Encana Corporation and Athlon Energy jointly announced that the two companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement for Encana to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of common stock of Texas-based Athlon by means of an all-cash tender offer for USD 5.93B (USD 58.50 per share). Encana would also be assuming Athlon’s USD 1.15B of senior notes, for a total transaction value of approximately USD 7.1B.
The acquisition will add Athlon’s land position of approximately 140,000 net acres focused solely in the heart of the oil-rich Midland Basin to Encana’s portfolio, giving the company a seventh growth area. Encana expects that the transaction will add current production of about 30,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) based on Athlon’s current estimated production including recent acquisitions.
Following this oil-rich acquisition, Encana now expects to achieve its initial 2017 target to reach 75 percent of operating cash flow from liquids production in 2015, marking a major strategic milestone. In the past year, the company has significantly realigned its portfolio through divestitures of natural gas-weighted assets and the acquisition and development of higher-margin oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs) opportunities. The transaction is expected to be closed by year-end 2014.
