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great commitment to ensuring sustainable MOL’s rating after strategic will ensure improved predictability and
business in the future and transforming more sustainable rates for suppliers in
our refinery system into a profitable shift by Hungary’s oil giant the seismic industry that is traditionally
business,” said Sandor Fasimon, president exposed to significant cyclicality,” says
of INA’s management board, said in a press Moody’s Investors Service affirmed Hungarian Peggy Krantz-Underland, Equinor’s chief
release. oil and gas company MOL’s Baa3 issuer rating procurement officer.
According to the company, the project with a stable outlook on March 3. The rating PGS and Shearwater have been awarded
will help INA cover Croatia’s domestic fuel is the same as Moody has on Hungary’s generic framework agreements covering
needs, making imports unnecessary. sovereign debt. 4D seismic services on the NCS for a firm
INA has already spent HRK900mn on The rating action was triggered after period of two years starting in 2021.
preparing the facility for the upgrade, MOL updated its long-term strategy a week The agreements include two two-year
bringing the total investment to almost earlier. In the update, MOL said it would options and can also be applied for the UK
HRK5bn. The company claims it is the increase climate-friendly investments, continental shelf.
largest investment in industrial plants in aligned with the EU’s classification system “4D seismic gives us better data to
the past 30 years in Croatia. for environmentally sustainable economic map remaining oil and gas resources
INA is owned by Hungary’s MOL activities, to over 50% of capex by 2030 as the reservoirs are being produced.
and the Croatian state. In June 2020, and close to 100% by 2050, or earlier. These contracts will help us optimize
it announced plans to build a €250mn MOL confirmed the goals outlined in its the reservoir drainage and place new
biorefinery in Sisek, central Croatia, that 2030 strategy, issued in 2016, to shift from wells, and thereby achieve our ambition
will enable it to produce second-generation fuels to chemicals, and from fuel retailing of recovering 60% of oil and 85% of gas
bioethanol from biomass. INA is also to consumer goods and mobility. Moody’s on the NCS,” says Charlotte Bøe Tjølsen,
investing €50mn into establishing a raw said MOL’s Baa3 rating is supported by its vice president of petroleum technology
material supply chain, growing the energy diversified business profile, strong refining operations in Equinor.
plant miscanthus. and retailing presence in the CEE region PGS has also been awarded a specific
and its “conservative financial policies”. framework agreement for 4D seismic
The rating is constrained by MOL’s services at the Gullfaks field in the
Turkeish gas imports from smaller scale and less diversified business Norwegian part of the North Sea. The
agreement comprises an exclusive right to
compared to most other integrated oil and
Azerbaijan up 20% in 2020 gas companies, its exposure to volatile oil acquire up to three surveys prior to 2031.
and gas prices and refining margins, its
“The new agreements will create
Turkey’s natural gas imports rose 6% y/y to comparatively small upstream portfolio, important activity for the suppliers. The
48bn cubic metres in 2020 from 45 bcm in uncertainties with regard to the future of offshore operations will be supported
2019 but remained below the 50 bcm seen in MOL’s Croatian unit INA, risks to demand by PGS’s office in Oslo and Shearwater’s
2018, according to data from Turkish energy for oil, and its “relatively sizeable” amount offices in Bergen and Gatwick,” Equinor
watchdog EPDK. of short-term liabilities, it added. said.
Russia retained its 34% share in Turkey’s Improved geographic diversification Under the frame agreement, Shearwater
imports while Azerbaijan recorded the biggest and a more balanced business profile could has been awarded an initial survey over the
expansion in market share, moving up to lead to an upgrade, Moody’s said, adding Heidrun Field in the Norwegian North Sea.
24%. that an upgrade would also require MOL Shearwater said it would allocate one of
to keep its adjusted retained cash flow/net its “high-end Isometrix vessels” for the
debt sustainably over 40%. one-month Heidrun survey, which starts in
Hifa Oil to build gas the adjusted retained cash flow/net debt Q2 2021.
A downgrade could follow a drop in
“The award adds to a growing
terminal in Lukavac sustainably under 25%, sustained negative worldwide 4D order book and supports the
company’s framework for optimizing vessel
free cash flow generation or a downgrade
Hifa Oil Group plans to build a gas terminal of the sovereign rating of Hungary, utilization,” Shearwater added.
in Dobosnica in the municipality of Moody’s said. Norwegian Seismic Firm Reactivates
Lukavac, as announced on the website of the Vessels Citing Pick Up in Activity
government of Bosnia & Herzegovina’s Tuzla “Shearwater’s commitment to
Canton. Equinor awards long-term geophysics and established leading 4D
The prime minister of the Tuzla Canton, technology positions us well to deliver
Kadrija Hodzic, has met with Izudin frame seismic deals to PGS high-quality time-lapse measurements
Ahmetlic and Venan Hadziselimovic, for Equinor. This new frame agreement
the general manager and the executive and Shearwater provides us with increased visibility and
manager of Hifa Oil Group to discuss the opportunity to optimize utilization
the development and investment projects Offshore seismic survey contractors PGS and and efficiency into the future,” said Irene
that the group plans to implement in the Shearwater GeoServices have been awarded Waage Basili, the CEO of Shearwater
territory of this canton. framework agreements with Equinor for 4D GeoServices. The frame agreement
“A terminal of a total capacity of around towed streamer seismic acquisition on the with Equinor has a firm period of two
3,000 tonnes, which would be the biggest Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) in what years starting in 2021 and includes two
one in Bosnia & Herzegovina, would Equinor said was a new way of working with additional two-year option periods.
stabilise the gas market in the country. seismic contractors. PGS is scheduled to acquire two 4D
The main objective of this project is to he agreements have a total estimated GeoStreamer monitoring surveys in 2021
secure the energy stability of Bosnia & value of around NOK700mn ($82.7mn). over Fram and Tordis/Vigdis fields. The
Herzegovina in terms of supply of gas, oil “This is a new way of working with first survey is scheduled to start in June
and oil products,” Ahmetlic said, reported seismic suppliers. We are moving away 2021, and the total duration for the two
eKapija. from annual tenders towards a more 2021 projects is estimated at around 2.5
long-term collaboration model. This months.

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