Zacks_Analysts' Blog : Newfield, APC Buys TXCO Assets - Analyst Blog

Newfield Exploration Co. (NFX) and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) announced a joint transaction to acquire TXCO Resources Inc.'s (TXCO) assets in the Maverick Basin of Southwest Texas for up to $310 million. The final amount will be determined at closing, which is expected in mid-February 2010. The closing is subject to bankruptcy court approval.

As per the deal, Anadarko will acquire more than 80,000 net acres in this basin from TXCO for approximately $93 million, growing its operated working interest in these properties to 75%.

Newfield will acquire substantially all of TXCO's remaining assets in the Maverick Basin, which includes more than 300,000 net acres for approximately $217 million. The assets acquired by Newfield are currently producing 1,500 BOEPD, of which two-thirds is oil. Acquisition of TXCO's assets marks Newfield’s entry into the Maverick Basin, providing it with a deep inventory of potential oil and gas locations.

With this acquisition, Newfield has added more than 500,000 net acres in long-lived resource plays over the last several months, consistent with its goal of focusing on large, domestic plays of scale.

Newfield Exploration is an independent crude oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Newfield's domestic areas of operation include the Mid-Continent, the Rocky Mountains, onshore Texas and the Gulf of Mexico. The company has international operations in Malaysia and China.

Anadarko engages in the exploration and production of oil and gas properties primarily in the United States, the deepwater of the Gulf of Mexico, and Algeria. The company markets natural gas, crude oil, condensate, and oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs), as well as owns and operates natural gas gathering, treating, and processing systems.