HOUSTON, Feb. 5�Drilling contractors Patterson Energy Inc., Snyder, Tex., and UTI Energy Corp., Houston, have agreed to merge.
Patterson provides domestic land-based drilling services to independent oil and gas companies. UTI provides contract drilling and pressure pumping services.
The merged company will be called Patterson-UTI Energy Inc. Under the deal, UTI Energy stockholders will get Patterson common stock on a one-for-one basis.
At the close of the market on Feb. 2, the companies had a combined market valuation of $2.6 billion, based upon their share prices.
The merger is subject to approval by the shareholders and government anti-trust review provisions.
Mark Siegel, the UTI chairman, will be chairman of Patterson-UTI. Cloyce Talbott, Patterson's chairman and CEO, will be CEO of Patterson-UTI.
Talbott said, "Patterson-UTI will have more than 300 land-based drilling rigs strategically located in some of the most prolific oil and gas producing regions in North America. In addition, we expect the combined companies to benefit from the considerable management skill and talent that both companies have developed over the past several years."
Siegel said, "Both UTI and Patterson have built shareholder value through strategic acquisitions, and we believe the merger will provide the combined companies with a stronger platform for further growth."
