The U.S.-based energy firm Noble Energy announced Monday that it will acquire independent oil and gas company Rosetta Resources for $2.1 billion.
Noble Energy will also acquire Rosetta's net debt of $1.8 billion as of March 31, 2015, according to statements on the companies' websites.
With the merger, Noble will get Rosetta's some 50,000 net acres in the Eagle Ford Shale in south Texas and 56,000 net acres in the Permian Basin in west Texas -- regions known for their rich oil and gas resources.
Noble said it has identified more than 1,800 horizontal drilling locations for development, which provide a resource potential of around one billion barrels of oil equivalent.
"The Eagle Ford and the Permian are premier unconventional resource plays, two of the most economic in the U.S., which will expand our resource base and development inventory and further diversify our portfolio," said Dave Stover, Noble Energy's Chairman, CEO, and President.
"The transaction will be immediately accretive to our per share production, reserves, earnings, and cash flow," he added in the statement.
In the first quarter of the year, Rosetta produced 66 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day, while proved reserves were around 282 million barrels of oil equivalent at the end of 2014.
"The combination with Noble Energy brings together two complementary companies with a deep and diverse portfolio of assets in key unconventional resource basins," said Jim Craddock, Rosetta's Chairman, CEO and President.
Noble Energy was one of the many energy firms that reported loss in the first quarter of the year due to plummeting oil prices.
The exploration and production company's total revenues decreased by 45 percent to $759 million in the first quarter of 2015, from $1,379 million the same period a year ago.
Noble Energy reported a loss of $22 million in net income for the first quarter of the year, while this amount was $200 million for the same period of the previous year.
Operating income fell from $404 million to a loss of $134 million, thus recording more than a $500 million fall.
By Ovunc Kutlu
Anadolu Agency
ovunc.kutlu@aa.com.tr