M&A

When oil prices began collapsing last year a lot of prognosticators said it was only a matter of time before oil majors and large independents began eyeing their smaller brethren for takeovers. A year later, there’s little consolidation, but that should change within the next few months, experts say.

A San Francisco-based activist hedge fund, which holds considerable stakes in Halliburton Co. and Baker Hughes Inc., told investors that it expects the mega-merger to be finalized because the partners are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve antitrust compliance.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has given unconditional clearance to the proposed merger of Royal Dutch Shell plc and BG Group plc. Three of the five pre-conditions of the merger have now been satisfied.

America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA) is set to fold into the American Petroleum Institute (API) by Jan. 1, which would continue to represent the nation’s independent natural gas producers and promote new markets for the resource after the organizations merge in January.

The Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) has rejected a proposal from Washington Gas Light Co. (WGL) to acquire a non-operating interest in 25 Pennsylvania wells through a deal with Energy Corp. of America.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. confirmed Wednesday it approached Apache Corp. about a potential buyout but was rejected, with no “discussions of substance” occurring.

A 14.7-million-acre (23,000-square-mile) spread of legacy oil and natural gas properties formed Monday when Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. (CNRL) and PrairieSky Royalty Ltd. agreed to pool their private drilling rights in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.

Marathon Oil Corp. said Monday it is selling most of its operated and nonoperated properties in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) to an undisclosed buyer for $205 million.

Executives with Targa Resources Corp. (TRGP) were on the defensive with analysts Tuesday after the company announced it would fold its master limited partnership (MLP), Targa Resources Partners LP (NGLS), in an all-stock deal valued at $6.67 billion.