Upstream global deal values ​​in oil and gas have returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2021, while the largest volume of production has changed hands in more than a decade, new data shows. Evaluate Energy.

The M&A recovery was driven by higher demand and prices after a year of underinvestment in new supply, said Eoin Coyne, senior M&A analyst at Evaluate Energy.

“In 2021, $144 billion in new upstream deals were closed,” said Coyne, co-author of Evaluate Energy’s latest annual M&A report. “This value is 53% higher than 2020 spending and consistent with the five-year average annual spending prior to 2020.”

The report – available here – analyzes the biggest deals of 2021, including green power deals and agreed investments by traditional oil and gas majors.

“The fact that overall spending for the year was in line with average annual non-Covid spending hides just how much upstream mergers and acquisitions took place in 2021,” added Coyne, co-author of the report. “More than 4 million boe/d of production has changed hands globally, which is the highest total since Evaluate Energy began tracking M&A transactions in the oil industry 14 years ago. year.”

Included in the report:

• Woodside, Santos and BHP undertake multi-billion dollar international mergers
• Pioneer, ConocoPhillips and Continental Resources make Permian acquisitions as Shell exits
• Gas companies join the wave of consolidation in the United States
• Canadian transactions are marked by the merger of ARC Resources and Seven Generations, and the Cenovus asset sale program
• Shell, Eni and Chevron are among the E&P majors to make major investments in the green energy sector in 2021

Download the free report here.