OMV Gas GmbH becomes GAS CONNECT AUSTRIA

December 14, 2011 - 12:00 am (CET)

• Further step towards the implementation of the Natural Gas Act 
• Free network access guaranteed for all market participants
• OMV Aktiengesellschaft remains the 100% owner

OMV presents GAS CONNECT AUSTRIA as the new name and new corporate design of subsidiary company OMV Gas GmbH. With the launch of the new brand GAS CONNECT AUSTRIA, OMV has taken a further important step towards the implementation of the Natural Gas Act provision to separate the areas of production and trade from network operations at an organisational level. GAS CONNECT AUSTRIA remains an independent gas network operator that is 100% owned by parent company OMV. 

GAS CONNECT AUSTRIA is responsible for the expansion and operation of a high-performance natural gas pipeline in Austria that is around 2,000-km in length. The most important transport routes are Trans Austria Gasleitung (TAG) and West Austria Gasleitung (WAG). Through the gas pipeline network with a marketed capacity of around 89 bcm, gas can be transported within Austria and to Europe. An important hub for this activity is Baumgarten an der March near the Slovakian border, where approximately a third of Russian gas exports to Western Europe are fed into the Austrian network and transported onwards.

OMV Erdgas GmbH was established in 2001 and was later renamed OMV Gas GmbH. At that time the focus was already on the requirements for a liberalised gas market. All market participants were then and still are offered free network access as well as the transparent marketing of capacity and services under uniform conditions.

"With the new market entry, the company’s autonomous role will now also be clear to the outside world," said Dr Harald Stindl, managing director of GAS CONNECT AUSTRIA. "As an important logistics partner in the European natural gas network, we contribute every day towards the security of both Austria and Europe’s gas supply," added Stindl. The new brand was presented at EU level during the general meetings in Vienna of representatives of Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) and the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG).

Background information:

Gas Connect Austria
Gas Connect Austria is a 100%-owned subsidiary of OMV Gas & Power GmbH. The company employs around 360 staff. In its role as an independent network operator it is responsible for around 2,000 kilometres of the domestic high-pressure natural gas pipeline with a marketed capacity of around 89 bcm. The natural gas hub at Baumgarten an der March forms the core of the Austrian natural gas network and is located near the Slovakian border. Largely Russian gas is taken on here and then distributed within Austria as well as to the neighbouring countries of Germany, Italy, France, Slovenia, Croatia and Hungary. As an important logistics partner in the European natural gas network, GAS CONNECT AUSTRIA plays a key role in safeguarding the supply of gas to Austria and Europe. The Baumgarten gas hub handles around a third of Russian export volumes to Western Europe. The existing infrastructure is expanded on a continual basis to safeguard gas supplies in the long term as consumption increases.

OMV Aktiengesellschaft
With Group sales of EUR 23.32 bn and a workforce of 31,398 employees in 2010, OMV Aktiengesellschaft is one of Austria’s largest listed industrial companies. 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 1.15 bn boe as of year-end 2010 and a production of around 287,000 boe/d in 9m/2011. In Gas and Power, OMV sold approximately 18 bcm of gas in 2010. In Refining and Marketing, OMV has an annual refining capacity of 22.3 mn t and as of the end of September 2011 approximately 4,700 filling stations in 13 countries including Turkey. In Austria, OMV operates a 2,000 km long gas pipeline network with a marketed capacity of around 89 bcm in 2010. With a trading volume of around 34 bcm in 2010, OMV’s gas trading platform, the Central European Gas Hub, is amongst the most important hubs in Continental Europe. 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.

Sustainability
OMV is a signatory to the UN Global Compact, and an active supporter to the values enshrined in its Code of Conduct. These include a strong sense of responsibility towards the social and natural environment, especially in economically weak regions. OMV continuously addresses economic, environmental and social issues related to its business in a responsible manner. The company reports on its activities in a sustainability report in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative Guidelines.