在协议以总计 5.4 亿美元现金收购 EnCap 支持的 Forge Energy II Delaware LLC 在二叠纪盆地的资产后，Vital Energy Inc. 不再是米德兰盆地的纯粹企业。

总部位于俄克拉荷马州塔尔萨的 Vital 5 月 12 日表示，已签署最终联合购销协议，以在特拉华盆地建立核心运营地位。该交易是该公司继4 月份收购米德兰盆地 Driftwood Energy Operating LLC后今年达成的第二笔交易。

根据与未透露姓名的第三方签署的收购协议，Vital 将以 3.78 亿美元的价格收购 Forge 70% 的资产。第三方将以1.62亿美元购买剩余30%的资产。Vital 将运营这些资产。

Vital 表示，由于 Permian 正在争先恐后地收购库存，此次收购在德克萨斯州佩科斯县、里夫斯县和沃德县增加了约 100 个总地点，总面积达 24,000 英亩。该交易将 Vital 在二叠纪的占地面积扩大至约 198,000 英亩净面积，并增加了 Vital 的平均日产量 9,500 桶油当量，其中石油含量为 65%。

此次交易增加了第二和第三 Bone Spring 和 Wolfcamp A 阵地的位置。Vital Energy 表示，该油井在 Nymex WTI 桶平均价格约为 50 美元的情况下实现了盈亏平衡。该公司还看到了堆叠结构的潜在上涨空间。

该公司（原名拉雷多石油公司）计划在收购的资产上运营一台钻井平台，将其二叠纪钻井平台总数增加到三座。

该公司表示，根据截至 4 月 28 日的带钢定价，此次交易的价值约为未来 12 个月综合 EBITDA 的 2.5 倍，“与该盆地最近的交易价值一致，预计未来 12 个月将增长 20%”。现金流量[FCF]”和每股自由现金流量。

Vital 预计此次购买将在 18 个月内以 75 美元的 Nymex WTI 价格实现杠杆中性。

Vital Energy表示，计划通过使用其信贷额度为此次收购提供资金。该交易预计将于 2023 年第二季度末完成，生效日期为 2023 年 3 月 1 日，具体取决于惯例成交条件。

Vital Energy 总裁兼首席执行官杰森·皮戈特 (Jason Pigott) 表示：“此次收购价格极具吸引力，并且显着扩大了 Vital Energy 对二叠纪盆地的关注范围，增加了特拉华盆地的核心运营区域。” “我们在通过严格的收购策略创造价值方面有着良好的记录。今天的交易大大增强了我们自由现金流产生的前景，我们将用它来偿还债务并加强我们的资产负债表。”

Houlihan Lokey 和 KeyBank 担任 Vital Energy 的财务顾问，Latham & Watkins 担任法律顾问。RBC Richardson Barr 担任 Forge 的财务顾问，Oelveny & Myers 担任法律顾问。欧埃尔文尼担任 Forge Energy II 的法律顾问。

Vital Energy Inc. is a Midland Basin pure play no more, following an agreement to purchase EnCap-backed Forge Energy II Delaware LLC’s assets in a Permian Basin in deal totaling $540 million cash.

Vital, based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, said May 12 that it has signed a definitive joint purchase and sale agreement to establish a core operating position in the Delaware Basin. The deal is the second the company has made this year following an April acquisition for Driftwood Energy Operating LLC in the Midland Basin.

Under the acquisition agreement, signed with an unnamed third-party, Vital will purchase 70% of Forge’s assets for $378 million. The third party will purchase the remaining 30% of the assets for $162 million. Vital will operate the assets.

As Permian operates scramble to buy up inventory, Vital said the acquisition adds about 100 gross locations in Pecos, Reeves and Ward counties, Texas, across 24,000 net acres. The deal expands Vital’s Permian footprint to about 198,000 net acres and adds and average production of 9,500 boe/d, 65% oil, net to Vital.

The transaction adds locations in the 2nd and 3rd Bone Spring and Wolfcamp A formations. Vital Energy said the wells breakeven at an average price of approximately $50 per Nymex WTI barrel. The company also sees potential upside in the stacked formations.

The company, formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, plans to operate one rig on the acquired properties, increasing its total Permian rig count to three.

The company said the transaction is valued about 2.5x its next 12 months consolidated EBITDA based on strip pricing as of April 28, “in line with recent transaction values in the basin and estimated to be 20% accretive to next 12 months’ free cash flow [FCF]” and FCF per share.

Vital anticipated the purchase will be leverage neutral within 18 months at $75 Nymex WTI.

Vital Energy said it plans to fund the acquisition through the use of its credit facility. The transaction is expected to close in late second-quarter 2023 with an effective date of March 1, 2023, subject to customary closing conditions.

“This accretive acquisition is attractively priced and significantly expands Vital Energy’s Permian focus, adding a core operating area in the Delaware Basin,” said Jason Pigott, Vital Energy’s president and CEO. “We have a proven track record of building value through our disciplined acquisition strategy. Today’s deal significantly enhances our outlook for free cash flow generation which we will use to pay down debt and strengthen our balance sheet."

Houlihan Lokey and KeyBank are serving as financial advisers to Vital Energy and Latham & Watkins is serving as legal counsel. RBC Richardson Barr is serving as financial adviser to Forge and O’Melveny & Myers is serving as legal counsel. O’Melveny served as legal counsel to Forge Energy II.