In just 12 months from sign-off to first gas, OMV's Wittau project has delivered a step-change in Austria's domestic energy supply. Project Manager Wolfgang Hirsch explains how the team made it possible — and what it means for Austria's energy future.
At a glance
- Wittau is Austria's biggest natural gas discovery in 40 years, strengthening the country's domestic energy supply and long-term energy security.
- The project moved from final investment decision to first gas in just 12 months, a complex delivery that included relocating an existing gas processing facility and drilling nearly five kilometers into the Vienna Basin
- Phase One will develop 11 TWh of gas, enough to heat around 100,000 homes for a decade, with the full discovery holding 48 TWh of recoverable resources.
- At peak development, Wittau is expected to raise Austria's share of domestically produced gas from 6.5% to 14%, reducing reliance on imports.
OMV has begun production at Austria's biggest natural gas discovery in 40 years. It’s a significant milestone, not only for the company, but for Austria’s long-term energy security.
The Wittau project, located in the Vienna Basin of Lower Austria, has come at a moment when reliable domestic energy supply has become more critical than ever.
"It's a real turning point in our domestic gas production" says Wolfgang Hirsch, the Project Manager who led the development from discovery to first gas.
What makes this accomplishment even more remarkable is the pace: Hirsch and his team completed that process in just 12 months – a timeline that demanded the full depth of OMV's engineering expertise, and its most advanced technologies.
What Wittau means in numbers
The first phase of the project alone will develop 11 terawatt-hours (TWh) of gas, which is enough to heat around 100,000 homes for a decade. With production beginning in the second quarter of 2026, it will ensure a reliable supply for the forthcoming winter.
But Phase One is only the beginning. The full Wittau discovery holds total recoverable resources of 48 TWh – enough to heat over 430,000 homes for a decade – extending domestic gas production long into the future.
At peak development, Wittau is expected to increase Austria's share of domestically produced gas from 6.5% to 14%, reducing its reliance on imports. This establishes the project as a long-term pillar of the country's energy sovereignty and security.
From seismic survey to sanction
Long before the first spades hit the ground, OMV embarked on what was, at the time, the largest 3D seismic survey in European history. This vast imaging operation covered 1,500 km² of terrain stretching from northeast Vienna into the Weinviertel region of Lower Austria. The survey dramatically improved OMV's understanding of the deeper subsurface. Combined with decades of in-house geological expertise, it unlocked new exploration potential in this mature basin that had previously remained out of reach.
That work eventually pointed to Wittau. A successful well test confirmed a discovery of genuine scale, at which point it entered the development phase and Hirsch joined the project. Project sanction (FID) was reached in March 2025 and First Gas by May 2026.
“One year is an exceptional pace for a project of this complexity,” he highlights. “We needed to bring the right people in at the right time.” That team consisted of a diverse range of people, from well engineers and drill operators to procurement officers and lawyers – all working to tight timelines.
Navigating complex challenges
The Wittau project came with two very different challenges - one above ground and one below it.
To meet a tight start-up timeline, the team made an early decision: instead of building a new gas dehydration facility – essentially a large industrial processing plant – they would relocate an existing one.
As Hirsch explains: "Time to start-up was the key business driver. And that’s why we decided very early to go for this relocation to meet the overall target."
This choice brought complexity - a major engineering and logistical challenge. Moving the facility required dismantling and transporting heavy machinery, piece by piece, before reassembling it at its new location. The facility had been out of operation for around a decade, so it also needed to be rigorously safety tested and re-certified.
But that effort paid off. As the operations team had worked with the facility for years previously, they were able to bring it into production quickly. saving months of construction time through experience-led decision-making
The second challenge was geological. The project required drilling nearly five kilometres straight down into the earth, through rock formations where the heat and pressure are intense. Having drilled to depths of over 8000 meters in 1983 - then Europe’s deepest such operation, here’s where our deep drilling expertise in the Vienna Basin made a difference.
Supported by our in-house Tech Center and Lab augmented this with cutting-edge technologies.They analyzed rock samples in real time as drilling progressed to help the team predict what lay ahead and make precise decisions.
“It’s a whole-team effort”
The operation ran around the clock for approximately six months. Geologists, drilling engineers and reservoir experts - bringing a diverse skillset - worked side by side, solving problems in real time and pushing the project forward step by step. Delivering something this complex project in such a tight time frame is testament to the depth of geological expertise and technology at OMV Austria, built up over 70 years.
"I’m so proud of everybody for the extraordinary performance and passion they brought to the project," Hirsch says. "There are so many functions and people involved in order to achieve that success."
A project built for Austria's energy future
Once fully developed, Wittau is expected to double OMV's domestic gas output in Austria, delivering on the full potential of a discovery that has been decades in the making.
In a geopolitical environment where the vulnerabilities of international energy supply chains have been laid bare, the ability to source more gas domestically is increasingly valuable.
The discovery, then, provides a tangible boost to Austria’s long-term energy security and resilience. This gas will complement renewables, provide stability to the energy system, and enable a responsible transition.
With 48 terawatt-hours of recoverable resources still to be unlocked, Wittau’s contribution is only just beginning.