US shale patch dealmaking stays sluggish
Several prominent deals have helped partially salvage M&A activity, but conditions still look gloomy
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on M&A activity in the US shale sector. The pace of deal-making fell to its lowest level in ten years across the first half of 2020 as the WTI price went negative for the first time in history and global energy demand nosedived. Deal-making recovered sharply in Q3 as several high-profile corporate moves helped buck the downward trend. Chevron completed a $13bn acquisition of US independent Noble Energy in July, the fourth-largest upstream deal in the last five years. The transaction represented over 60pc of the total value of M&A completed across the quarter. Noble’s Eastern Mediterranean portfolio was a core motivation for the mer
Also in this section
23 May 2025
LNG projects need the certainty of long-term contracts, but Henry-Hub–linked deals put buyers at significant risk
22 May 2025
Industry says compliance is near-impossible and have called for more clarity to prevent cargoes being redirected
22 May 2025
The next energy crisis could come from the severing of the link between oil and gas prices, with potentially severe economic consequences
22 May 2025
With contract awards looming on the Kuwait-Saudi backed Dorra field, the long-stalled gas project appears finally to be gaining traction—despite Iranian objections
