OGJ100P: Private energy companies gaining some recognition
Since the OGFJ100P report was last published in February, some of the listings have changed as executives have come and gone and companies have been acquired. This updated listing reflects those changes.
Private companies and private equity capital often fly well below the radar. They don’t show up as even a tiny “blip” on most media screens. Public companies and their counterparts in the investment community generate most of the noise and garner most of the attention.
While private companies don’t often seek out publicity, most would like the significant role they play in the oil and gas industry acknowledged by their peers, if not the general public. Most feel a surge of pride when they receive a bit of recognition for the job they are doing in supplying the country with critically important energy resources.
One of the goals of this publication is to further industry awareness of this deserving group of companies. We try to accomplish this by teaming with the John S. Herold Co. to publish a quarterly report on production statistics from US-based private E&P firms that ranks them according to total production, gas production, and liquids production. We also list company headquarters, top executives, and the main fields in which the companies operate.
Here are a few events that have helped shape private energy producers since the previous report in January:
• On March 1, J-W Operating Co., based in Addison, Tex., acquired Heritage Wireline Services for an undisclosed amount of cash. The acquisition of Tyler-based Heritage complements the company’s East Texas and North Louisiana operations. Excell Services, another subsidiary, provides wireline and other services in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Utah, Louisiana, Texas, and Arkansas. J-W Operating Co. is headed by Howard G. Westerman Jr., chairman and CEO; G. Gene Gradick, president; and Paul D. Westerman, COO. Gene C. Daley serves as vice president of the company and president of Cohort Energy Co., an E&P subsidiary founded in 1983.
• Centre Partners Management LLC, with offices in New York and Los Angeles, and its Dallas-based affiliate, Centre Southwest Partners LLC, completed the acquisition of a majority interest in Gray Wireline Service Inc. through a newly-formed entity, Gray Energy Services LLC, on March 9. The investment in Gray Energy Services creates a partnership among the company’s senior management team, Centre Partners and Centre Southwest. Centre and its affiliates invested about $24 million in equity in Gray to acquire roughly 60% of the company. Management of Gray will own the balance of the company. Gray Wireline, founded in 1983 in Levelland, Tex., by Steve Gray is an established independent provider of cased-hole wireline services to the domestic oil and gas industry. Larry Cavanna, who previously served in management roles at Halliburton and Computalog, will serve as CEO of Gray Energy Services. Steve Gray remains a shareholder of the company and will become a member of the board of directors.
• Ellora Energy Inc., a privately-owned independent E&P company based in Boulder, Colo., has retained Petrie Parkman & Co. to assist the firm in “evaluating strategic alternatives.” CEO T. Scott Martin says, “We intend to thoughtfully consider our options and are pleased that Petrie Parkman is assisting us in this important initiative.” He added, “There can be no assurances that a transaction of any kind will result from this strategic review process.” Ellora’s operations are focused in the East Texas, Mid-Continent, and Rocky Mountain regions.
• Denver-based Forest Oil Corp. has agreed to buy properties in East Texas’ Cotton Valley gas development for $255 million to boost its onshore production portfolio. Forest, with revenues in excess of $1 billion in 2005, is a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange, but the sellers were six private companies, among them Houston-based Chalker Energy Partners. Chalker was formed in December 2003 by Alan Smith and Tom Campbell and funded by Quantum Energy Partners. Smith serves as president and CEO, and Campbell is executive vice president and COO. The company has an “acquire and exploit” strategy and operates mostly in gas basins in Texas.
The 26,000 acres acquired by Forest have an estimated 110 bcfe and are currently producing about 13 MMcfe/d.
• Stephens & Johnson/S&J Operating Co., headquartered in Wichita Falls, Tex., notes that our previous listing of its top executives was incorrect. Thomas Frederick Stephens is president of the company, and Joe L. Johnson Jr. is vice president.
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