NEW YORK -- Chesapeake Energy (IW 1000/267) plans to sell a package of shale oil production assets and undrilled acreage in the United States to Southwestern Energy (IW 1000/990) for $5.4 billion, the companies announced Thursday.
The deal covers 413,000 acres of land in West Virginia and Pennsylvania that currently produce about 56,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, about 8% of Chesapeake's output. Southwestern said the properties complement shale assets the company already owns in Pennsylvania.
The transaction, expected to close in the fourth quarter, follows a string of other deals as U.S. shale production soars.
The recent 25% drop in oil prices since June is partly due to rising output in the U.S..
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2014
