A consortium comprising Aker and Trafigura has made an offer to acquire a 51% stake in the exploration and production (E&P) business of Austrian energy firm OMV, as reported by Reuters.
The consortium also includes private equity firm Bluewater and global commodities trader Trafigura.
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It is understood to have made an unsolicited offer for OMV’s E&P business.
According to Austrian newspaper Kurier, the consortium expects that the 51% stake in OMV’s E&P division could be valued at between $5.5bn and $7bn.
The consortium said it would also guarantee Austria’s gas supply security.
The Austrian government currently holds a 31.5% stake in OMV. The country secured 80% of its gas from Russia prior to its invasion of Ukraine.
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By GlobalDataNo details have been given on how the consortium would deliver the gas to Austria, which is looking to reduce its reliance on Russian natural gas.
An OMV spokesperson said: “Since OMV is in the process of analysing its portfolio as part of its strategy implementation, we replied that we cannot seriously discuss it at the moment.”
The firm also confirmed it had received an offer letter from the consortium for its E&P business, excluding its Romanian unit Petrom or E&P business in Russia.
Kurier reported that Norway’s Mime Petroleum chairman and CEO Sverre Skogen was the head of the consortium.
Earlier this year, OMV announced its decision to cease future investments in Russia following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
As part of the plan, the firm said it would carry out a strategic review of all options, including the exit or divestment of its 24.99% interest in the Yuzhno Russkoyegas field.
Russia had previously been one of the core regions in OMV’s exploration and production portfolio. The decision was expected to negatively impact the firm’s financial results by $1.6bn to $2bn.
