GE Energy Financial Services, a unit of GE, has formed partnerships to acquire West Texas natural gas and North Dakota oil and gas reserves for a total of nearly $200 million. 

West Texas
In the first transaction, GE Energy Financial Services formed a partnership with independent oil and gas company Marlin Energy LLC. Their new alliance, Marlin Permian LP, acquired natural gas reserves in West Texas from an undisclosed seller for $65 million. GE Energy Financial Services will serve as limited partner. Lafayette, La.-based Marlin Energy will serve as both general partner of the partnership and operator of the assets.

Rocky Mountain
In the second transaction, GE Energy Financial Services has formed a partnership with Denver-based Sequel Energy LLC to acquire oil and gas reserves in the Williston Basin of North Dakota from Denver-based St. Mary Land & Exploration Co. for $137 million.

As part of its turnaround program, St. Mary Land & Exploration Co. entered into two agreements to sell non-core properties in the Rocky Mountain region with estimates of 20 MMboe of proved reserves and 3,000 boe/d of production.

In December, St. Mary entered into an agreement with Legacy Reserves Operating LP to sell the Wyoming portion of the divestiture package for $130 million. This recent agreement with GE Energy Financial Services and Sequel Energy was negotiated in January.

In this transaction, GE Energy Financial Services will serve as the limited partner, with Sequel serving as general partner and operator. The acquisition fits well in to privately-held Sequel’s strategy to acquire assets in domestic onshore areas with long-lived, multi-pay production at moderate depth and which possess manageable reserve risk.