Diversified Energy Co., with backing from partner Carlyle, is acquiring Anadarko Basin E&P Canvas Energy in a cash-and-equity deal valued at approximately $550 million.
The deal complement’s Diversified’s existing position in Oklahoma with additional assets concentrated in Major, Kingfisher and Canadian counties, the company said after markets closed Sept. 8.
Privately held Canvas Energy engaged investment bank Evercore to explore a potential sale of its Anadarko Basin assets, Hart Energy first reported in April.
Canvas’ current net production is approximately 147 MMcfe/d, or about 24,000 boe/d. The acquisition includes 23 wells that have been turned to sales in the past 12 months.
“This purchase strengthens Diversified by further expanding our footprint in our Oklahoma operating area with targeted assets that are a perfect fit for increasing our scale, allowing for synergy capture and providing meaningful opportunities for margin enhancement, that ultimately will grow and bolster our cash flow,” Diversified CEO Rusty Hutson Jr. said.
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Hutson said the Canvas acquisition was made under the company’s partnership with investment firm Carlyle. The two companies previously announced plans to invest up to $2 billion acquiring proved developed producing (PDP) U.S. oil and gas assets.
The purchase price will be funded through Carlyle-originated asset-based lending facility, existing liquidity and 3.4 million Diversified shares issued to the sellers.
The transaction is expected to close during fourth-quarter 2025
After closing, Diversified will hold 1.6 million net acres and produce nearly 1.3 Bcfe/d across Oklahoma.
The Canvas deal also includes “commercially attractive undeveloped acreage with meaningful development locations,” which Diversified could look to sell in the future.
Diversified said the undeveloped acreage is continuous with recently sold Anadarko Basin acreage with pricing of between $1,500 and $2,000 per acre.
Canvas, which rebranded from Chaparral Energy in 2022, holds approximately 241,000 net acres mainly concentrated in the STACK play. The acquisition includes 570 net wells, including 385 net operated wells.
Diversified manages tens of thousands of wells in plays across the Lower 48 but drills none itself. Instead, it harvests cash flow from low-decline producing assets in basins scattered around the U.S.
This spring, Diversified closed a $1.3 billion acquisition of Maverick Natural Resources, adding assets in the western Anadarko Basin and the Permian Basin.
M&A activity is heading up in the Anadarko Basin as natural gas prices increase and E&Ps search for new drilling runway.
Following its high-profile Marathon Oil acquisition, ConocoPhillips sought a new home for its Oklahoma portfolio. ConocoPhillips announced finding a buyer in August, agreeing to sell its Oklahoma assets to private E&P Flywheel Energy for $1.3 billion. The deal is expected to close early in the fourth quarter.
Oklahoma City-based Flywheel Energy is backed by Stone Ridge Energy, the energy-focused investment platform of financial services firm Stone Ridge Holdings Group.
Validus, backed by Elliott Asset Management, has deployed more than $3 billion into Anadarko Basin M&A over the past year.
Camino Natural Resources had been exploring a sale in the range of $2 billion but has pulled back from a marketing process, sources told Hart. Denver-based Camino holds approximately 135,000 net acres in the core of the Anadarko.
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