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In US oil, M&A fever shows no signs of abating. After a record-breaking 2023, the trend continues into the new year, with a further significant deal announced on Monday 12th: Diamondback Energy will buy the private company Endeavor Energy Partners for 26 billion dollars in shares and cash.
The deal follows by about a month Cheaspeake’s deal to take over Southwestern, a $7.4 billion stock exchange, and APA’s $4.5 billion takeover of Callon Petroleum.
In all (and neglecting smaller deals) they make 37.9 billion in the space of six weeks, which adds to a boom in operations which according to Enverus Intelligence Resource (Eir) is unprecedented in history with regards to upstream activities, i.e. exploration and hydrocarbon production: the fourth quarter of 2023 recorded deals for a total of 144 billion in enterprise value, bringing the figure for the full year to 190 billion, the company estimates, in both cases a record.
Like many acquisitions of the past year, the latest one – agreed between Diamondback and Endeavor after months of negotiations, accompanied by insistent rumors – features two important shale oil operators, active in particular in the legendary Permian basin, to which largely the rebirth of the United States as an energy power.
In this area alone, which extends between Texas and New Mexico, around 6 million barrels a day are now extracted: more than in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait combined. Washington, with an oil production that exceeds 13 mbd, today no longer has rivals (Saudi Arabia with the OPEC+ cuts is at 9 mbd and has recently given up on expanding capacity beyond the current 12 mbd).
2024-02-13 11:51:16
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