INEOS Energy to acquire part of Chesapeake Energy’s Eagle Ford shale assets for $1.4bn

INEOS Energy will acquire a part of Chesapeake Energy’s oil and gas assets in the Eagle Ford shale, south Texas for $1.4 billion as part of its strategy to build a global integrated portfolio.

The acquisition of the US assets marks INEOS Energy’s entry as operator into the US onshore oil and gas market.

Under the agreement, the energy division of British chemical company INEOS will acquire 2,300 wells with a collective production capacity of 36,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in the Eagle Ford shale.

Post-closing, INEOS Energy will hold production and exploration leases across 172,000 acres in south Texas.

Brian Gilvary — INEOS Energy Chairman said: “The deal marks our entry into the US market and is another significant step in the INEOS Energy journey.

“Over the last two decades, US onshore oil and gas production has provided security of supply for the global market and competitive advantage for US industry.

“We believe this acquisition will help us to serve our internal and external customers today as we continue to position our business to meet the energy transition.”

INEOS Energy to acquire part of Chesapeake Energy’s Eagle Ford shale oil and gas assets for $1.4bn. Photo courtesy of INEOS.

The close of the acquisition is expected in Q2 2023, with an effective date of October 2022.

The Eagle Ford shale includes an area of approximately 26,000 square miles and stretches from the Mexican border in the south to east Texas in the north, with estimated more than 10 billion barrels of oil and 350 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

INEOS Energy is part of a consortium of eleven companies that support the carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology deployment in Houston, Texas.

The project is anticipated to capture and store up to 50 million metric tons of CO2 a year by 2030 and approximately 100 million metric tons by 2040 in the Houston area alone.

In addition, NEOS Energy leads a consortium that will trial the world’s first cross border offshore carbon capture and storage project in the North Sea, later this year.

INEOS Energy is also committed to cut its carbon emissions and achieve net-zero by 2050.