Page 8 - bne magazine July 2022_20220704

8 I Companies & Markets bne July 2022
Romania receives gas from first new offshore development in 30 years
bne IntelIiNews
Romania received the first quantities of natural gas extracted from Midia Gas Development (MGD), run by Black Sea Oil & Gas (BSOG), the company announced on June 15.
This is the first new offshore gas development in Romania in more than three decades.
Owned by private equity firm Carlyle Group, BSOG aims to extract 10bn cubic metres (bcm) of gas from Midia over the project’s life. But it has repeatedly delayed the field’s launch, urging the government to amend regulations that developers have said are stifling offshore gas development. Midia had previously been due to come onstream in November last year.
The project is expected to deliver approximately 500mn cubic metres of gas this year. The peak production expected to be around 1 bcm per year. Midia is expected to cover around 10% of Romania’s gas consumption.
“It has been a long and challenging journey to finally reach
this significant milestone for the country. A number of firsts were achieved in Romania, all during a global pandemic and, more recently, conflict in Ukraine that threatened to impact Black Sea operations," said Mark Beacom, BSOG’s CEO.
"The result of all these efforts is that MGD project provides not only 10% of Romania’s gas demand, but the path, and possibly even the infrastructure, for other developers in the Black Sea, as well as to launch a number of green energy development initiatives, making MGD an integrated energy transition infrastructure.”
Romania had aspirations to become a net exporter of gas following the discovery of large offshore resources. But amid these continued delays, the country continues to rely on Russian gas imports to supplement domestic supply. Like many other EU states, Romania is scrambling for ways to phase out Russian gas use in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, while also seeking to ensure energy bills do not grow too steeply.
Albania trails neighbours in auto-parts
production but economists see a chance
to catch up
bne IntelIiNews
Albania has a chance to take advantage of changes to the automotive industry’s supply model following the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic to help its auto-parts industry grow and integrate with the European automotive value chain, a World Bank Group report said.
Currently, Albania’s auto-parts industry is part of the European regional value chain, along with other countries in Central and Southeast Europe and the Middle East and North Africa. However, the Albania Country Private Sector Diagnostic Report (CPSD) from the IFC and the World Bank describes Albania’s auto-parts sector as “nascent” and says
www.bne.eu
that other Western Balkan countries, including Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia, have “established a substantial presence in the auto industry, and their automotive sectors are significantly larger than Albania’s”.
“Albania’s automotive sector is smaller than those of its regional peers, and auto parts account for less than 1% of its total merchandise exports,” it adds.
Foreign direct investors started setting up auto-parts factories in Albania over the last 10 years, drawn in by