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15 Nov 16 – OMV [VIE:OMV], the Austrian oil and gas company, is to launch a sale process for a 50% stake in its Grand Prix oil block in Madagascar at the start of 2017, said John Austin, the company’s general manager for Sub-Saharan Africa. OMV has a 90% stake in the Grand Prix block offshore Madagascar. It is under exploration and the company is processing data from a 3D seismic survey it shot over 3,000 sq km, Austin said. Private Calgary, Alberta-based EnerMad holds the remaining 10% of Grand Prix. Data processing for the seismic survey will be completed in the coming months, and OMV plans to open a data room for potential buyers in Vienna in the new year, Austin said. The company’s plans to sell approximately 50% mean it will likely bring on two partners, Austin said. Grand Prix spans almost 17,000 sq km. It has P10 (with at least 10% certainty) reserves of 100m barrels of oil, Austin said. The estimated capital expenditure is USD 20 per barrel and opex USD 9 per barrel, Austin said. OMV is ramping up preparations to drill a well at Grand Prix over the coming months, and it will look to drill in 2018, Austin said. Drilling will not take place until an additional equity partner is on board, Austin said. Meanwhile, OMV is also interested in acquiring additional acreage in the upcoming Madagascar licensing round, Austin said. Madagascar’s Office of National Mining and Strategic Resources (OMNIS) is planning a 40-block licensing round for 2017. OMV’s market capitalisation is EUR 9.93bn (USD 10.67bn). The company’s shareholders are Österreichische Bundes- und Industriebeteiligungen (ÖBIB), an Austrian state holding company with 31.5%; Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) with 24.9%; and 0.3% of own shares. Its free float is 43.3%. by Katie McQue |
Katie McQue 