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OKLAHOMA CITY & THE WOODLANDS, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 12,
2007--Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) and Anadarko Petroleum
Corporation (NYSE:APC) jointly announced today the completion of
multiple agreements, including a joint venture involving Chesapeake
and Anadarko assets in the Deep Haley area of the Delaware Basin in
West Texas.
Through the formation of a joint venture and other separate
agreements, Chesapeake received:
- 25% of Anadarko's existing Deep Haley area production;
- 25% of Anadarko's leasehold in the central and eastern
portions of the Deep Haley area;
- 50% of Anadarko's leasehold and contractual rights in the
western portion of the Deep Haley area;
- A lease from Anadarko on 2,100 net acres in the Fayetteville
Shale play in Arkansas;
- An assignment of 5,600 net acres of undeveloped leasehold in
the Anadarko Basin in western Oklahoma; and
- The Oklahoma City real estate assets acquired by Anadarko last
year as part of its acquisition of Kerr-McGee Corporation.
Through the formation of the joint venture and other separate
agreements, Anadarko received:
-
Approximately $310 million in cash and other consideration,
including reimbursement of capital expenditures previously
incurred by Anadarko in connection with the development of the
Deep Haley properties and Chesapeake's commitment to fund a
portion of Anadarko's future Deep Haley area capital costs;
and
- 50% of certain Chesapeake non-producing leasehold interests in
Loving County, Texas.
In total, Anadarko and Chesapeake will jointly evaluate and
explore more than 1 million gross acres in the Deep Haley area, on
which drilling, completion, production and midstream operations will
be shared on roughly a 50/50 basis. The two companies plan an
aggressive drilling program for the area, with Anadarko and Chesapeake
each currently operating eight drilling rigs in the Deep Haley area
with the possibility of increasing drilling activity as the joint
venture develops.
Aubrey K. McClendon, Chesapeake's Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer, commented, "We are very pleased to announce this transaction
with Anadarko. We have long admired Anadarko's capabilities in deep
gas exploration and we are now excited to join forces with them in the
Deep Haley area, one of the country's premier deep gas exploration
projects. Our recent drilling results in the Deep Haley area have been
exceptional and we are confident that by joining forces with Anadarko
the technical teams of the two companies will continue to enjoy
success in drilling prolific wells in the Deep Haley area. As reported
during our 2007 first quarter earnings conference call last month,
Chesapeake's most recent seven wells in the Deep Haley area generated
a combined 90 mmcfe per day of gross production during May. We hope to
drill many more similarly productive wells in our new partnership with
Anadarko in the years to come. In addition, we are pleased to purchase
the former Kerr-McGee properties in Oklahoma City. These properties
are important to our community and we are happy to return them to
local ownership."
James T. Hackett, Anadarko's Chairman, President and Chief
Executive Officer stated, "This transaction fits our strategy very
well and positions us for continued growth from a core asset with a
partner that understands this play. The Deep Haley area in West Texas
has recovered over 1.4 TCF from the over-pressured Pennsylvanian
formations. Anadarko started work in the basin in 2003 and employed
state-of-the-art drilling and completion technology with great
success. After accumulating the rights to over 400,000 net acres, it
was time to expand our drilling operations and we are glad to have
Chesapeake jointly involved with us. Working collaboratively will
enable our companies to maximize value by accelerating development of
the considerable resources in the play. Our substantial combined
position provides us with meaningful upside potential from future
drilling activity, and we look forward to working with Chesapeake to
continue delivering these resources to American consumers."
Chesapeake Energy Corporation is the third-largest independent
producer and sixth-largest overall producer of natural gas in the
United States. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the company's
operations are focused on exploratory and developmental drilling and
corporate and property acquisitions in the Mid-Continent, Fort Worth
Barnett Shale, Fayetteville Shale, Permian Basin, Delaware Basin,
South Texas, Texas Gulf Coast, Ark-La-Tex and Appalachian Basin
regions of the United States. Chesapeake's Internet address is
www.chkenergy.com.
Anadarko Petroleum Corporation's mission is to deliver a
competitive and sustainable rate of return to shareholders by
exploring for, acquiring and developing oil and natural gas resources
vital to the world's health and welfare. As of year-end 2006, the
company had 3.0 billion barrels-equivalent of proved reserves, making
it one of the world's largest independent exploration and production
companies. For more information about Anadarko, please visit
www.anadarko.com.
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The companies believe that
their expectations are based on reasonable assumptions. No assurance,
however, can be given that such expectations will prove to have been
correct. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ
materially from the projections, anticipated results or other
expectations expressed in this news release, including drilling risks
and the ability to execute on production and development plans. See
"Risk Factors" in the companies' 2006 Annual Reports on Form 10-K and
other public filings and press releases from the companies. The
companies undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements.
CONTACT: CHESAPEAKE CONTACTS:
MARC ROWLAND, 405-879-9232
mrowland@chkenergy.com
or
JEFFREY L. MOBLEY, CFA, 405-767-4763
jmobley@chkenergy.com
or
ANADARKO INVESTOR & MEDIA CONTACTS:
JOHN COLGLAZIER, 832-636-2306
john.colglazier@anadarko.com
or
JOHN CHRISTIANSEN, 832-636-8736
john.christiansen@anadarko.com
SOURCE: Chesapeake Energy Corporation and Anadarko Petroleum
Corporation