Anadarko Sells Midstream Assets For $4B

Anadarko Petroleum Corporation is selling for US$4.015 billion basically all of its remaining midstream assets to Western Gas Partners, a master limited partnership formed by Anadarko a decade ago to own, develop, and operate midstream assets.  

Anadarko will receive US$2.0075 billion of the transaction proceeds in cash, while the remainder to be paid in new Western Gas equity, Anadarko said in a statement on Thursday.

Anadarko’s remaining midstream assets subject to the sale are largely associated with Anadarko’s two key U.S. onshore oil plays in the Delaware and DJ basins. The acquired assets include DBM Oil Services, APC Water Holdings, the Bone Spring Gas Plant, and the MiVida Gas Plant in the Delaware Basin of West Texas. In the DJ Basin in Colorado, the partnership is buying Anadarko’s 100-percent interest in both the DJ Basin Oil System and the Wattenberg Plant. Anadarko is also selling its equity stakes in the Saddlehorn Pipeline, the Panola Pipeline, and the Wamsutter Pipeline.

The sale is expected to close in the first quarter of 2019, and is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

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The midstream asset sale “supports our durable strategy of returning value to Anadarko’s shareholders, as we expect to continue prioritizing the use of cash and free cash flow to repurchase shares, reduce debt, and increase the dividend over time,” Anadarko’s president and CEO Al Walker said.

Following the deal announcement, Anadarko (NYSE:APC) shares were up 2.25 percent at 10:01 a.m. EST on Thursday. On Wednesday, Anadarko’s stock jumped 6 percent after voters in Colorado rejected a ballot initiative to increase the setback distance for drilling, in a big win for Colorado-exposed oil firms such as Anadarko.

“We appreciate the passionate efforts of our employees and many others who shared information to help bring Coloradans together to defeat this extreme measure,” Anadarko’s Al Walker said in a statement following the Colorado ballot.

“We recognize the defeat of Proposition 112 is not a lasting referendum, and we will work with the newly elected officials and those continuing in office to find a better equilibrium to reduce the concerns associated with the rapidly growing population and oil and gas activity in Colorado.”

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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