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Liberty Resources II LLC Announces Acquisition of Bakken Assets, Marking Return to Williston Basin
Posted in Press Releases.Denver, CO and London, UK (Jan. 30, 2014) –Liberty Resources II LLC (“Liberty II” or the “Company”), a Denver-based oil and gas company, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire oil and gas assets in North Dakota’s Williston Basin for $455 million. The properties to be acquired comprise approximately 53,000 net acres in Williams, Divide, Burke and McKenzie counties and over 4,000 boe/day of production from the Bakken and Three Forks formations, which Liberty II will continue to target as it furthers the development of the acquired properties. The transaction represents the first acquisition by Liberty II since it announced in November 2013 a $350 million equity commitment from funds managed by energy private equity firm Riverstone Holdings LLC (“Riverstone”), including Riverstone Global Energy and Power Fund V and Riverstone Energy Limited (“REL”), management, and other investors.
Riverstone and Liberty II management previously partnered successfully in Liberty Resources LLC (“Liberty”), an oil and gas company focused on the Bakken. Over the course of two years and through thirteen discrete proprietary acquisitions, Liberty established a land position of approximately 43,000 net acres and drilled and completed 29 operated wells in the Bakken and Three Forks formations of North Dakota, ultimately achieving over 6,000 boe/day of net production. Liberty realized industry-leading recovery rates in the Bakken due to its application of unique and proprietary completion designs. The majority of Liberty’s assets were sold to Kodiak Oil & Gas in July 2013 for approximately $680 million.
Liberty II is led by Chairman and CEO Chris Wright, President Mark Pearson, CFO Paul Vitek and other former senior executives of Liberty. Similar to the strategy employed by Liberty in the Bakken Shale, Liberty II will apply the management team’s expertise in well completion design and execution to the future development of the newly acquired Bakken properties, which are proven, yet largely undeveloped and include some of the most highly productive acreage in the Williston Basin.
Mr. Wright commented: “Over the past two years, Liberty’s unique completions approach consistently demonstrated the highest average production rates of any operator in the Bakken formation. The announced acquisition provides us with exposure to highly attractive areas of the basin where we have not previously operated and where we hope to achieve similar operational success as that achieved during our team’s prior venture.”
About Riverstone Holdings LLC
Riverstone is an energy and power-focused private investment firm founded in 2000 by David M. Leuschen and Pierre F. Lapeyre, Jr. with approximately $27 billion of equity capital raised. Riverstone conducts buyout and growth capital investments in the exploration & production, midstream, oilfield services, power and renewable sectors of the energy industry. With offices in New York, London and Houston, the firm has committed approximately $25.1 billion to 105 investments in North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa and Asia.
About Riverstone Energy Limited
REL is a closed-ended investment company that invests exclusively in the global energy industry, with a particular focus on the exploration & production and midstream sectors. The company is well positioned to take advantage of, and benefit from, the large number of investment opportunities being driven by continued global energy demand, including the North American energy revolution. REL aims to capitalize on the opportunities presented by Riverstone’s pipeline of investment opportunities. REL is listed on the London Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol RSE.
Media Contacts
For Liberty Resources II LLC:
Paul Vitek, CFO
+ 1-303-749-5714For Riverstone Holdings:
James David or Jeffrey Taufield
Kekst and Company
+1-212-521-4800
