Chesapeake Energy Sells $6.9 Billion Of Assets To Repay Debts

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Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) said on Wednesday that it has signed a number of agreements to sell parts of its oil and gas fields in the Permian Basin, along with many other assets, for a combined total of $6.9 billion. EnerVest, Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), and a unit of Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE:RDS.A) (NYSE:RDS.B) will pay $3.3 billion to acquire the acreage in the Permian Basin.

Chesapeake Energy Sells $6.9 Billion Of Assets To Repay Debts

Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) has 1.5 million acres in the Permian Basin, spread over western Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The Oklahoma-based company has been planning to sell Permian basin assets since the beginning of this year. In another deal, Chesapeake said Global Infrastructure Partners will buy the most of its pipeline and processing operations for $2.7 billion. An undisclosed buyer will be purchasing Chesapeake’s Utica shale acreage for an estimated $600 million. Two other undisclosed companies will pay $300 million to acquire additional oil gathering pipelines in Texas’ Eagle Ford.

“These transactions are significant steps in the transformation of our company’s asset base to a more balanced portfolio among oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas resources and production,” Chesapeake CEO Aubrey McClendon said.

With today’s announcement, Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK)’s asset sale has reached $11.6 billion this year, so far. The company had planned to raise $13-14 billion by shedding assets to repay the debts and meet the $10 billion funding gap. Chesapeake said it will use the proceeds of this acquisition to repay the $4 billion of term loans maturing in the fourth quarter.

On June 1, Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) announced its biggest oil discovery in a formation called Hogshooter, near the Oklahoma-Texas border. At the same time, a company spokesman Jim Gibson said that Chesapeake will not sell the 30,000 acres of Hogshooter leaseholds.

The value of Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK)’s stock has declined almost 60 percent in the past 12 months. The falling gas prices have restricted the company’s cash flow and forced Chesapeake to accelerate the asset sales process. Additionally, investors were disappointed by CEO McClendon’s conflict of interest between his personal financial dealings and corporate duties, which resulted into two federal probes.

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