"Dafora", very close to signing two contracts worth 10 million Euros in Crimea

• Teodor Orzan, the head of the drilling division: "We intend to submit tenders in Irak as well if < Romgaz > succeeds in securing concessions down there"

"Dafora" Mediaş, controlled by businessman Gheorghe Călburean, has completed the negotiations for drilling services worth an estimated 10 million dollars, in Crimea.

"Dafora" succeeded in entering the Ukrainian market since the autumn of 2007, after incorporating "Dafora Ukraine", in which it is the sole shareholder, earlier in the same year. The main line of business of the company is providing services for gas and oil drilling.

In the beginning of January, a delegation which included Gheorghe Călburean, the chairman of "Dafora" went to Ukraine to renegotiate the resumption of operations, which was interrupted due to the shortage of funding for oil companies, amid the economic crisis.

"In Ukraine, we are at the final stage of signing two drilling contracts with two oil companies operating in Crimea", Teodor Orzan, the head of the drilling division of "Dafora" said for BURSA. He added: "The negotiations are complete, we are just waiting for our partners to sign. In the oil industry, contracts are usually signed for a year, and they specify the daily drilling rates. In this industry, working 365 days a year is very unlikely. What I can say is that the contracts are worth approximately 10 million dollars. We will begin work as soon as they are signed. The drilling installation is stored in the center of Ukraine at the moment".

• "Dafora", "Prospecţiuni" and "Condmag" go to Spain in search of foreign contracts

Gheorghe Călburean and Ovidiu Tender are looking to implement a "business alliance" between their companies which operate in the oil sector, allowing them to attend the foreign calls for tenders together. Officials of "Condmag", "Dafora" and "Prospecţiuni" gave this "alliance" a try in Spain, where they went together to convince local companies of the benefits of cooperating with them.

"We went to Spain together with the managers of Prospecţiuni and Condmag, where we had talks with four oil companies. We told them we could provide the full range of services they need, starting with seismic operations, (which Prospecţiuni would be qualified to do), all the way to drilling (which could be done by Dafora) and the connection of the oil wells to the transport system (which could be done by Condmag)", said Teodor Orzan.

Going to the foreign markets is one of the development strategies of the companies, as its domestic market is rather limited. The head of the drilling division of "Dafora" said that the company would also be interested in working in Iraq, if "Romgaz" secured any concessions over there: "We intend to submit tenders in Iraq if Romgaz succeeds in securing concessions down there and launches a call for bids for the use of the hydrocarbon fields ".

"Dafora" Mediaş is listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, with the symbol DAFR. The company has a market capitalization of 104 million lei, based on the last price of 0.107 lei/share of Friday"s trading session. Gheorghe Călburean owns 48.5% of the company, whereas "Foraj Sonde" Craiova holds 5.26%.