2021年，高產(chǎn)的二疊紀(jì)盆地發(fā)生了大量備受矚目的石油交易  

 獨(dú)立的石油公司正在引領(lǐng)二疊紀(jì)盆地的并購(gòu)熱潮  

 特拉華盆地尤其吸引勘探和生產(chǎn)公司的注意力  

據(jù)美國(guó)油價(jià)網(wǎng)報(bào)道，作為頁(yè)巖探區(qū)的明星，二疊紀(jì)頁(yè)巖遠(yuǎn)景區(qū)見(jiàn)證了2021年的油氣并購(gòu)熱潮，因?yàn)樵S多公司試圖通過(guò)增加在該遠(yuǎn)景區(qū)的業(yè)務(wù)，或者像殼牌公司那樣完全退出該遠(yuǎn)景區(qū)，來(lái)獲得超越競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手的優(yōu)勢(shì)。

殼牌公司從二疊紀(jì)盆地的退出使康菲公司耗費(fèi)了95億美元現(xiàn)金，但此次收購(gòu)大大提升了康菲公司在二疊紀(jì)盆地的地位。  

獨(dú)立股東在油氣并購(gòu)交易整合方面可能更加活躍。總部位于得克薩斯州的石油生產(chǎn)商Earthstone 能源公司去年12月斥資6億美元收購(gòu)了二疊紀(jì)盆地最具吸引力的部分特拉華盆地的資產(chǎn)，這筆收購(gòu)交易預(yù)計(jì)將在今年3月底完成。 Earthstone能源公司表示，此次收購(gòu)將使其油氣產(chǎn)量增加39%。

另一家總部位于得克薩斯州的鉆探公司阿布拉克薩斯石油公司本月早些時(shí)候表示，該公司已出售了其在北達(dá)科他州的所有資產(chǎn)，以便專(zhuān)注于二疊紀(jì)盆地的業(yè)務(wù)。阿布拉克薩斯石油公司首席執(zhí)行官表示，此舉將幫助該公司減輕債務(wù)負(fù)擔(dān)，提高股東回報(bào)。

美國(guó)最多產(chǎn)的頁(yè)巖遠(yuǎn)景區(qū)也在進(jìn)行整合。去年12月，私募股權(quán)公司EnCap投資公司將其投資組合中的兩家在二疊紀(jì)盆地運(yùn)營(yíng)的公司合并為一家價(jià)值40億美元的公司，新公司所有者計(jì)劃今年上市。 EnCap投資公司的計(jì)劃表明，盡管ESG推動(dòng)，且銀行越來(lái)越不愿向油氣行業(yè)放貸，但石油行業(yè)仍將繼續(xù)保持樂(lè)觀。

這一趨勢(shì)在去年繼續(xù)延續(xù)，當(dāng)時(shí)二疊紀(jì)盆地在利率處于創(chuàng)紀(jì)錄低位、油價(jià)不斷改善、原油需求前景看漲的情況下，行業(yè)整合真正開(kāi)始。 僅在去年第二季度和第三季度，就發(fā)生了總價(jià)值300億美元的交易，其中包括殼牌公司把二疊紀(jì)盆地的資產(chǎn)出售給康菲公司。  

根據(jù)發(fā)布上游并購(gòu)季度報(bào)告的evaluate能源公司, 2021年第二季度的并購(gòu)交易價(jià)值180億美元，第三季度為120億美元。 第四季度的數(shù)據(jù)還沒(méi)有公布，盡管可能出現(xiàn)一定程度的放緩，但這個(gè)數(shù)據(jù)估計(jì)可能會(huì)保持強(qiáng)勁。

李峻 編譯自 美國(guó)油價(jià)網(wǎng)

原文如下：

Will The Permian Merger Mania Continue Into 2022?

·     2021 saw a big number of high-profile oil deals in the prolific Permian basin

·     Independent oil companies are leading the charge

·     The Delaware Basin is especially attracting attention from E&Ps

The Permian shale play, the star of the shale patch, witnessed a hot merger and acquisition year in 2021 amid the pandemic as many companies sought to gain an edge over competitors by either increasing their presence in the play or in the case of Shell, leaving it altogether.

Shell's exit from the Permian cost ConocoPhillips $9.5 billion in cash, boosting its position in the Permian quite considerably at a time when the play continues to be a magnet for an industry no longer committed to production growth at all costs.

Independents are perhaps even more active in dealmaking. Earthstone Energy, a Texas-based oil producer, last month paid some $600 million for assets in the Delaware Basin—one of the most attractive parts of the Permian—with the deal slated to close by the end of March this year. Earthstone said the acquisition would increase its production by 39 percent.

Another Texas-based driller, Abraxas Petroleum Corporation, earlier this month said it had sold all of its assets in North Dakota in order to focus on operations in the Permian. According to the company's chief executive, the move would help Abraxas reduce its debt load and boost returns to shareholders.

Consolidation is also ongoing in the most prolific U.S. shale play. Last month, private equity firm EnCap Investments merged two of its portfolio companies operating in the Permian into a $4-billion company that the owner plans to take public this year. The plan signals continued optimism for the oil sector despite the ESG push and banks' growing reluctance to lend to oil and gas.

The trend is a continuation from last year when consolidation really took off in the Permian amid record-low interest rates, improving oil prices, and a bullish demand outlook for crude. In the second and third quarters of the year alone, deals worth a total of $30 billion took place, including Shell's sale to Conoco. 

According to evaluate Energy, which publishes quarterly reports on upstream M&A, the second quarter of 2021 saw deals worth $18 billion during the second quarter and $12 billion during the third quarter. The figures for the fourth quarter have yet to come out, but they are likely to have remained robust even though a certain slowdown is likely to have been recorded.