WPX Energy buys RKI for $2.75 bln

Upstream operator WPX Energy has agreed to purchase RKI Exploration and Production for the sum of $2.35 billion. WPX Energy will gain access to RKI’s Permian Basin fields, while taking responsibility for $400 million in RKI debt.

WPX Energy’s purchase serves the company’s long-term goal of increasing profitability over the next five years through a concerted effort to raise oil output fivefold. The deal will include leases in the Delaware Basin, a relatively undeveloped section of the oil-rich Permian Basin. Colorado’s largest gas producer, WPX Energy will also acquire RKI’s assets, which include four rigs currently operating in Texas and New Mexico.

The company has announced that it will finance the transaction through the sale of 27 million shares, $300 million in convertible preferred stock and $1.2 billion of senior unsecured notes.

The deal is the largest for WPX Energy since the operator split from its parent company, Williams Companies, in 2012. The firm operates throughout North America and has total proved reserves around 727 million barrels of oil equivalent.

 

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