Work has officially begun on a key segment of Romania’s largest offshore energy project, as OMV Petrom and Romgaz move forward with construction of the pipeline that will connect Black Sea gas fields to the mainland.
The new infrastructure will span approximately 160 kilometers, linking offshore production facilities to an onshore station in Tuzla, where gas will be measured and injected into the national transmission system. The pipeline will be assembled from thousands of steel segments with a diameter of around 76 centimeters.
According to OMV Petrom CEO Christina Verchere, the broader Neptun Deep development represents a major investment of about €4 billion and is expected to deliver roughly 8 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually once operational. She noted that 2026 will be a critical execution year, with multiple offshore and subsea components being installed in parallel, as the partners target production start in 2027.
The installation phase will involve a large-scale offshore operation supported by a fleet of around 50 vessels, including specialized subsea construction ships responsible for welding, testing, and laying pipeline sections on the seabed. The first vessel, Castoro 10, has already arrived and begun initial works in the coastal area.
The pipeline will make landfall through a microtunnel in Tuzla, a method designed to reduce environmental impact while improving operational safety. From the perspective of Romgaz CEO Răzvan Popescu, the start of pipeline installation represents a crucial milestone, highlighting the importance of the partnership in strengthening both national and regional energy security.
The Neptun Deep project includes a wider infrastructure system beyond the pipeline, consisting of an offshore production platform, subsea systems, and a total of ten wells—some already drilled in the Pelican South field and others under development in the Domino area. An onshore control and metering station in Tuzla will complete the integrated production system.
