Exxon is closely watched in the industry and an acquisition like XTO could prompt others like Royal Dutch Shell PLC, BP BLC, or Chevron Corp. to move.
Potential targets include big natural gas companies like Chesapeake Energy, Devon Energy, and Anadarko, Gheit said.
XTO shows the priority that major producers are giving to natural gas as a fuel source. New technology has unlocked trillions of cubic feet of natural gas at home, meaning energy producers do not have to navigate tricky political environments overseas.
That doesn’t mean that those projects are being excluded.
Exxon just last week gave the go-ahead for a $15 billion natural gas project in Papua New Guinea, positioning the world’s largest publicly traded oil company to provide energy to a fuel-hungry China.
XTO claims about 45 trillion cubic feet of gas, much of it trapped in tight formations known as shale. Exxon has signaled recently that it was moving increasingly toward landing natural gas assets. Once the deal closes, Exxon said, it will establish a new organization to manage global development and production of unconventional resources.
Exxon also will assume $10 billion in XTO debt.
“XTO has a proven ability to profitably and consistently grow production and reserves in unconventional resources,’’ Bob Simpson, chairman of XTO, said in a statement. Simpson is one of the nation’s highest paid executives. with compensation last year of $53.5 million.
