Romania intends to double its gas supplies by developing the Neptun Deep deepwater field on the shelf in the Black Sea. This was announced on January 20 by the country's Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja after a meeting with Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto. Burduja added that the launch of the project, which should double gas production capacity and meet part of the needs of the entire region, is scheduled for 2027. "We have already said that we prefer Europe to depend on Romanian gas, not Russian gas," he emphasized. At the meeting with Szijjarto, Burduja emphasized that Romania seeks to ensure the region's energy security and get rid of the energy blackmail of "those who have held us captive for decades." "In this regard, Romania, which is today the leading gas producer in the EU, is working on the launch of the Neptun Deep project in 2027, which will double our natural gas production capacity, which will allow us to meet part of the needs of the region. It is obvious that we will only export what we do not need for domestic consumption, and only for commercial purposes - this means more money for Romanians," he said.
Burduja recalled the partially implemented BRUA (Bulgaria-Romania-Hungary-Austria) gas pipeline system, which will allow the transportation of Romanian gas to Hungary and Austria. "This project is of fundamental importance for strengthening the energy security of the two countries and the region as a whole," he added.
It should be noted that the development of the Neptun Deep field is carried out by the Austrian company OMV, which has already signed an agreement with the German Uniper group on gas supplies from 2027. The recoverable reserves of the field are estimated at 100 billion m³. This makes Neptun Deep one of the largest fields in the EU. After the start of operation of the field, Romania could become the largest gas producer in the EU.
