Oil, gas deal tracker: Asset transactions in December grow YOY on Aker M&A

The value of asset-level transactions in the oil and gas industry rose year over year in December 2021 on the strength of one large European deal, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data.

The number of announced asset transactions fell year over year, from 62 in December 2020 to 39 in December 2021, but their aggregate value increased from about $4.95 billion to about $8.26 billion.

December 2021 also saw a decline in whole-company and minority-stake deals — 38, compared with 64 in the year-ago period. The combined value of deals fell from $5.48 billion to $3.69 billion year over year.

ConocoPhillips' acquisition of a 10% stake in Australia Pacific LNG Pty Ltd. for about $1.65 billion from Origin Energy Ltd. was the biggest whole-company and minority-stake deal announced in December 2021. ConocoPhillips will pay for the purchase with cash.

The largest asset deal announced in the month, and the eighth-largest asset deal announced in 2021, was Norwegian company Aker BP ASA's $2.22 billion purchase of the oil and gas business of Swedish company Lundin Energy AB. Before the deal was announced, Lundin Energy was exploring a possible sale.