OREANDA-NEWS. OMV, an integrated, international oil and gas company, announces the completion of important milestones in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. An extended well test (EWT) commenced production from the Bina Bawi-3 well on March 20, 2013. Furthermore the contractor group has submitted a Declaration of Commerciality for the field to the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

The initial capacity of the EWT from Bina Bawi-3 is around 5,000 boe/d with the potential to expand beyond this level to approximately 10,000 boe/d, as future wells become available. The Bina Bawi field, located east of Erbil, is operated by OMV which holds a 36% stake, 44% are held by Genel Energy plc and further 20% by KRG.

A further extensive testing program will be planned on the Bina Bawi-4 and -5 wells during the course of Q2/13, and the contractor group will be moving ahead with the preparation of a Field Development Plan for submission to the Ministry of Natural Resources of the KRG in Q3/13.

Jaap Huijskes, OMV Executive Board Member responsible for Exploration and Production: “We are very pleased with this result. The progress of the development of Bina Bawi as well as the Declaration of Commerciality are important milestones to further expand our business in this region. In accordance with our partners, Genel and KRG, we will continue our work to fully appraise the potential of this promising field. OMV sees the Kurdistan Region of Iraq as an important area for growth and the progress on the Bina Bawi field underlines our ability to execute our strategy”.

With Group sales of EUR 42.65 bn and a workforce of around 29,000 employees in 2012, OMV Aktiengesellschaft is Austria’s largest listed industrial company. In Exploration and Production, OMV is active in two core countries Romania and Austria and holds a balanced international portfolio. OMV had proven oil and gas reserves of approximately 1.12 bn boe as of year-end 2012 and a production of around 303,000 boe/d in 2012. In Gas and Power, OMV sold approximately 437 TWh of gas in 2012. In Austria, OMV operates a 2,000 km long gas pipeline network with a marketed capacity of around 103 bcm in 2012. With a trading volume of around 528 TWh, OMV’s gas trading platform, the Central European Gas Hub, is amongst the most important hubs in Continental Europe. In Refining and Marketing, OMV has an annual refining capacity of 22 mn t and as of the end of 2012 approximately 4,400 filling stations in 13 countries including Turkey. OMV further strengthened its position through the ownership of a 97% stake in Petrol Ofisi, Turkey’s leading company in the retail and commercial business.