U.S. upstream dealmaking during 3Q2021 slid from the record-setting sequential activity, but the overall values transacted still topped the five-year quarterly average, according to Enverus.

Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity during 3Q2021 by U.S. exploration and production (E&P) companies was down 44% from 2Q2021. 

However, the $18.5 billion transacted overall was above the quarterly five-year average of about $16 billion, the firm said. The five-year average excluded the $57 billion takeover of Anadarko Petroleum Corp. by Occidental Petroleum Corp. in 2019.

“We have seen a red-hot market for upstream M&A since the industry recovered its footing from the initial shock of Covid-19,” said Enverus director Andrew Dittmar. “It was inevitable that the hungriest buyers...