London, UK | – American petroleum and natural gas exploration and production company Anadarko has signed an agreement to sell its Eagleford Shale assets in South Texas, US to a strategic 50/50 partnership formed by Sanchez Energy and asset manager Blackstone Group for about $2.3bn.
The sale, which is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of 2017, includes about 155,000 net acres located next to Sanchez’s Catarina asset, about 100 miles southwest of San Antonio.
Anadarko plans to use part of the proceeds from the sale to invest in its high-return oil assets in the Delaware Basin, the DJ Basin, and the deepwater Gulf of Mexico.
Anadarko chairman, president and CEO Al Walker said: “We are deeply grateful to the team at Anadarko, which has built the Eagleford Shale into a coveted asset that will continue to be an important domestic source of energy for our nation.”
Sanchez said the development of Eagle Ford Shale covers approximately 80% of the acreage, with significant resource potential from the Austin Chalk and Pearsall Shale.
Sanchez Energy CEO Tony Sanchez III said: “With the asset strategically located adjacent to our existing Catarina asset, we anticipate substantial operating synergies and other benefits arising from the scale and concentration of our Eagle Ford position.”
The acquisition of assets, jointly known as Comanche Eagle Ford Asset, is expected to more than double Sanchez’s drilling inventory and increase resource potential by over 550 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBoe).
The firm also expects the acquisition to triple its exposure to the Upper and Middle Eagle Ford trends.
Sanchez III added: “The Comanche Eagle Ford Asset generates free cash flow that can be allocated to help fund our 2017 capital budget and comes with a large inventory of high rate of return drilling opportunities that will build upon our already high quality drilling program.
“As a result, we project that Sanchez Energy will be producing in excess of 100,000 Boe/d while operating within cash flow in the next 12 to 18 months.”
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and adjustments.
