Lukoil seeks to put its Romanian Black Sea perimeter Trident under force majeure protection

Lukoil Overseas Atash BV, a subsidiary of the Russian group Lukoil and operator of the Trident offshore perimeter in the Black Sea (88%), has officially notified the Romanian authorities that it is in a force majeure situation that makes it impossible for it to continue operations, according to Mediafax. The force majeure could prevent the transfer of the exploration licence, which furthermore expires this October, to Lukoil’s minority partner in the project - Romanian state-owned company Romgaz.

In 2025, preparations were reported for drilling an exploration well, and resource estimates of tens of billions of cubic meters were circulated in the public space, with significant investments in exploration.