M&A

Industrywide Issues | M&A | Sand/Proppant

Atlas Energy Acquiring Hi-Crush to Create #1 Frac Sand Producer
February 28, 2024February 28, 2024

Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. entered into a definitive agreement with Hi Crush Inc. to acquire all of Hi-Crush’s Permian Basin proppant production assets and the company’s North American logistics operations in a transaction valued at $450 million. Although Atlas focuses solely on the Permian, Hi-Crush sells proppant to multiple basins, including deals with drillers in the Marcellus/Utica. The combination of both companies into one new company will create the largest frac sand producer in the U.S.
Read More “Atlas Energy Acquiring Hi-Crush to Create #1 Frac Sand Producer”
Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Pipelines | Statewide VA | Statewide WV | Virginia | West Virginia

Equitrans Looking at Potential Buyer; MVP Now Delayed Until 2Q
February 21, 2024February 21, 2024

Two really big (huge) pieces of news are coming from yesterday’s Equitrans Midstream fourth quarter and full-year 2023 update. The first bit of news is that Equitrans is actively considering a buyout offer. The company doesn’t use that exact language, but that’s what’s happening. This should come as no surprise, given the rumor mill on a potential Equitrans sale heated up last December (see Equitrans Midstream, Builder of MVP, Considers Selling Itself). The second bit of news is that (surprise!) the 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project, which was supposed to be done and online by the end of March, will slip into the second quarter. Oh! And the price tag has increased once again, thanks to various lawsuits by Big Green and complicit judges.
Read More “Equitrans Looking at Potential Buyer; MVP Now Delayed Until 2Q”
Industrywide Issues | Lycoming County | M&A | Pennsylvania

Sources: Occidental Looking to Sell Its Share of Western Midstream
February 21, 2024February 21, 2024

According to sources whispering to reporters from Reuters, Occidental Petroleum is “exploring a sale of Western Midstream Partners,” a U.S. natural gas-focused pipeline operator that has a market value of close to $20 billion. Western Midstream responded to the news report by issuing a press release to say it is NOT engaged in any kind of sale process. But that’s a bit disingenuous as Occidental owns a controlling interest in the company. So if Oxy sells its interests, it is, in essence, selling the business.
Read More “Sources: Occidental Looking to Sell Its Share of Western Midstream”
Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Ohio | Trumbull County

Clean Energy Future Sells Lordstown Power Plant to ArcLight Capital
February 21, 2024February 21, 2024

In June 2016, Massachusetts-based Clean Energy Future broke ground on an $800 million, 940-megawatt Utica gas-fired electric plant in Lordstown (Trumbull County), OH (see Lordstown Energy Center Breaks Ground on $890M Electric Plant). The plant was completed and went online in October 2018 (see Lordstown (OH) Energy Center Now Online, Generating 940 MW). In 2019, the super-efficient, low-emission plant won an award from POWER Magazine (see Utica-Fired Lordstown Energy Center Wins POWER Mag Top Plant Award). And that’s all we had heard about that project, which continues to hum along, producing electricity for 850,000 homes. Until now.
Read More “Clean Energy Future Sells Lordstown Power Plant to ArcLight Capital”
DT Midstream | Energy Services | Greene County (PA) | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Marion County | Monongalia County | Noble County | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Susquehanna County | Tioga County (PA) | West Virginia

DT Midstream 4Q – M-U Pipeline Operations Expand, Looking for M&A
February 20, 2024February 20, 2024

DT Midstream (DTM), headquartered in Detroit, owns major assets in the Marcellus/Utica region and other regions like the Haynesville. DTM issued its fourth quarter 2023 update last Friday. The Marcellus/Utica region (which they call Northeast in the report) received several prominent mentions during a conference call with analysts. Also of note were comments by DT CEO David Slater, who said he’s positioning the company to take advantage of “bolt-on” opportunities in the regions where they operate. Meaning he’s on the lookout for mergers and acquisitions.
Read More “DT Midstream 4Q – M-U Pipeline Operations Expand, Looking for M&A”
Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | M&A

Is Coterra Energy Headed for Buyout and Split Back to Oil & Gas?
February 15, 2024February 15, 2024

From time to time, we bring you news of the latest merger and acquisition (M&A) deals happening, especially the deals that impact the Marcellus/Utica. Often, we don’t highlight large M&A deals if they are exclusively between companies operating in other shale plays and regions. One of those deals we ignored was announced on Monday, a proposed merger between publicly-traded Diamondback Energy, which wants to buy privately held Endeavor Energy Resources for $26 billion. Both companies operate in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico. The question floating around the O&G space is, who’s left to buy and merge after all of the M&As happening over the past year or so? It’s a pretty short list. One of the companies on that list (with significant Permian acreage, in addition to Marcellus acreage) is Coterra Energy.
Read More “Is Coterra Energy Headed for Buyout and Split Back to Oil & Gas?”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | M&A | Southwestern Energy

Look for O&G Jobs to be Trimmed Later in 2024 Due to Mergers
February 8, 2024February 8, 2024

Although oil and natural gas output is still increasing ever-so-slightly, according to experts like Rystad Energy, the rate of production growth has slowed. And because production is slowing, “investments in the shale patch are not expected to grow in 2024, keeping activity and output relatively flat” this year. How does slowing activity in 2024 affect employment in O&G in 2024? Rigzone asked a couple of experts. One comment in particular caught our attention because it has implications not only in the Texas oil patch, but also in the M-U gas patch.
Read More “Look for O&G Jobs to be Trimmed Later in 2024 Due to Mergers”
Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Energy Companies | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | Jefferson County (OH) | M&A | Monroe County | Northern Oil & Gas | Ohio

NOG Closes on Deal for Ascent-Operated Utica Wells & Acreage
February 6, 2024February 6, 2024

Last November, Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NOG), a company that invests in non-operated oil and gas assets (they let others do the drilling), announced a deal to enter the Utica Shale (see NOG Invests in Utica Wells, Acreage Operated by Ascent Resources). The deal includes non-operated interests in Ohio’s Jefferson, Harrison, Belmont, and Monroe counties. Yesterday, NOG said it closed on the deal and now owns those assets.
Read More “NOG Closes on Deal for Ascent-Operated Utica Wells & Acreage”
Allegheny County | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh Airport NatGas Microgrid & Two Others Sold for $165M
January 31, 2024January 31, 2024

In early 2013, the Pittsburgh International Airport and Allegheny County, PA, signed a deal with CONSOL Energy (now CNX Resources) to lease 9,000 acres surrounding the airport for natural gas drilling (see $50M Check in the Mail: Pittsburgh Airport Lease a Done Deal). The airport added an electric microgrid that burns Marcellus gas from airport property, and since July 2021, the airport has produced all of its own electricity (see Pittsburgh Airport Now Generates All Its Power Using Marcellus Gas). The microgrid was built and is owned by the utility company Peoples Gas (now called Essential Utilities). Essential announced yesterday it is selling the airport microgrid and two other microgrids it owns in the Pittsburgh region to Cordia for $165 million.
Read More “Pittsburgh Airport NatGas Microgrid & Two Others Sold for $165M”
Industrywide Issues | M&A | Pipelines

Spire Connects Midwest Customers to M-U Molecules w/Pipe Deals
January 22, 2024January 22, 2024

Spire Inc. is the owner and operator of the Spire STL Pipeline, a 65-mile pipeline that connects to and flows Marcellus/Utica gas from the Rockies Express (REX) pipeline in Scott County, IL, to residents and businesses in the St. Louis, MO area. Spire STL has been up and running since 2019 (see Spire Pipeline Ready to Flow Marcellus/Utica Gas to St. Louis). Spire announced on Friday the company has completed its acquisition of MoGas Pipeline (MoGas), an interstate natural gas pipeline, and Omega Pipeline (Omega), a connected gas distribution system, from CorEnergy Infrastructure Trust, Inc.
Read More “Spire Connects Midwest Customers to M-U Molecules w/Pipe Deals”
Chesapeake Energy | CNG/LNG | Energy Companies | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Southwestern Energy

Haynesville & LNG the Main Driver of Chesapeake/Southwestern Deal
January 12, 2024January 12, 2024

Even though separately (and together) Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy own MORE assets in the Marcellus/Utica than in the Haynesville shale play, the main driver to do a merger between the two companies is the Haynesville and that play’s close proximity to LNG export facilities along the Gulf Coast. That is the conclusion of most analysts based on comments made yesterday by Chesapeake and Southwestern in announcing a $7.4 billion deal to combine the companies (see Deal is Done! Chesapeake & Southwestern Announce $7.4B Merger). So, the big question is, What does that mean for the Marcellus/Utica?
Read More “Haynesville & LNG the Main Driver of Chesapeake/Southwestern Deal”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Southwestern Energy

Deal is Done! Chesapeake & Southwestern Announce $7.4B Merger
January 11, 2024January 11, 2024

This morning, Chesapeake Energy Corporation and Southwestern Energy Company announced that the two companies agreed to merge in an all-stock transaction valued at $7.4 billion, or $6.69 per share, based on Chesapeake’s closing price on January 10, 2024. Under the terms of the agreement, Southwestern shareholders will receive 0.0867 shares of Chesapeake common stock for each share of Southwestern common stock outstanding at closing. Chesapeake shareholders will own roughly 60% of the combined company, and Southwestern shareholders will own 40%. In other words, Chessy is buying out Southwestern.
Read More “Deal is Done! Chesapeake & Southwestern Announce $7.4B Merger”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Southwestern Energy

Chesapeake + Southwestern Merger Would Face Regulatory Hurdles
January 10, 2024January 10, 2024

Interest in and speculation about a potential mega-merger between Chesapeake Energy (CHK) and Southwestern Energy (SWN) continues to build. On Monday, MDN told you about a story in the Wall Street Journal citing sources who say a merger is close and could be announced this week (see Chesapeake & Southwestern Very Close to Announcing $17B Merger). Let’s put a little context around such a merger. Both companies have major assets in both the Pennsylvania Marcellus and Louisiana Haynesville shale plays. A combined company would catapult over EQT to become the largest shale gas producer in the country.
Read More “Chesapeake + Southwestern Merger Would Face Regulatory Hurdles”
American Energy Partners Inc. | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | M&A

American Enviro. Reverse Merger w/Hospital Supply Chain Co Coming 1Q
January 10, 2024January 10, 2024

Last October, MDN told you that American Energy Partners, Inc. (AEPT), based in Allentown, PA, with its fingers in several different pies, including subsidiaries in drilling, remediation, water, and more, changed its name to American Environmental Partners, Inc. (see American Energy Partners Changes Name, Swaps Enviro. for Energy). A few days later, MDN exclusively broke the news that American Environmental Partners would merge with a hospital supply chain company called SCWorx, a company that has nothing whatever to do with shale energy (see American Energy Announces Reverse Merger w/Hospital Supply Chain Co). Now comes word the merger will likely happen before the end of March (or maybe early April).
Read More “American Enviro. Reverse Merger w/Hospital Supply Chain Co Coming 1Q”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Southwestern Energy

Chesapeake & Southwestern Very Close to Announcing $17B Merger
January 8, 2024January 8, 2024

In mid-October, the rumor mill kicked into high gear with talk that Chesapeake Energy was sniffing around a merger with Southwestern Energy (see Chesapeake Energy Exploring a Merger with Southwestern Energy). Both Chesapeake and Southwestern have significant, long-time Marcellus assets (in Pennsylvania), and both have added new assets in the Louisiana Haynesville in recent years. They are on parallel tracks with their strategy of using Marcellus assets as a cash cow to fund more drilling in Haynesville, with an eye on grabbing higher prices in foreign markets by exporting Haynesville gas as LNG. It certainly makes sense that one company would be interested in combining with the other. Last Friday, the Wall Street Journal reported the two are very close to a deal — a deal that could be announced as early as this week.
Read More “Chesapeake & Southwestern Very Close to Announcing $17B Merger”
Industrywide Issues | M&A

U.S. Natural Gas Mergers & Acquisitions “Scarce” and “Uneven”
January 8, 2024January 8, 2024

Apart from today’s news that Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy (two huge gas drillers) are close to announcing a merger (see today’s lead story), it is oil companies in U.S. shale that seem to be at the epicenter of a hot M&A market. According to an analyst writing for Argus Media, “meaningful consolidation among US natural gas producers looks unlikely to take place soon owing to historically low, volatile commodity prices and a dearth of large privately-held operators.” The best opportunities lie with companies that have assets in the Haynesville, says the analyst. Perhaps uncoincidentally, both Chesapeake and Southwestern have major assets in the Haynesville (and the Marcellus/Utica).
Read More “U.S. Natural Gas Mergers & Acquisitions “Scarce” and “Uneven””