Shares of Houston-based independent producer Mission Resources Corp. rose more than 8% last Tuesday to $6.50 but slide back to the $5.60s by Friday after the company said that it retained Petrie Parkman & Co. to assist in evaluating strategic alternatives designed to enhance shareholder value. Mission also said the move does not guarantee that a transaction will take place.

The company, which is led by several former El Paso Production Co. executives, was formed in 2001 through the merger of Bellwether Exploration Co. and Bargo Energy. Mission has about 204 Bcfe of gas and oil reserves in the Permian Basin, Gulf Coast region and Gulf of Mexico.

“Our management team has been and remains focused on building shareholder value by strengthening our balance sheet, high-grading our asset base, developing a robust prospect inventory and implementing an effective operations program,” said Robert L. Cavnar, Mission’s CEO and a former CFO of El Paso Production Co. “We believe it is now appropriate to consider additional options that could benefit our shareholders.”

The company’s proved reserves are 59% gas and 73% developed. Its operations are concentrated in the Permian Basin (in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico), along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast and in both the state and federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

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