Despite a slowdown in headline deal values this spring, upstream mergers and acquisitions remain active beneath the surface.

In this ICYMI episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, Mikaila Adams, managing editor, examines data from Enverus and Rystad Energy detailing international and North American upstream deal markets in 2025 and into 2026.

The discussion explores how pricing uncertainty widened the gap between buyers and sellers, creating a temporary pause rather than a collapse in market activity.

The episode also looks at where capital continues to flow and what those trends reveal about the industry's direction. From North American consolidation led by the Devon Energy–Coterra Energy merger to continued interest in gas-weighted assets tied to Gulf Coast LNG exports, the analysis highlights the forces shaping today's upstream M&A landscape.

It also considers the likelihood of additional divestitures, private equity activity, and asset sales as companies refine their portfolios, pointing to continued dealmaking momentum even in a more volatile market.

Devon, Coterra joining forces to create 1.6 million boe/d shale titan

https://www.ogj.com/general-interest/companies/news/55354563/devon-coterra-joining-forces-to-create-16-million-boe-d-shale-titan

Ovintiv to divest Anadarko assets for $3 billion

https://www.ogj.com/general-interest/companies/news/55358241/ovintiv-to-divest-anadarko-assets-for-3-billion

Mitsubishi to enter US shale gas business through Haynesville asset acquisition

https://www.ogj.com/general-interest/companies/news/55344199/mitsubishi-to-enter-us-shale-gas-business-through-haynesville-shale-acquisition

Shell to expand Canadian operations with $16.4-billion acquisition of ARC Resources

https://www.ogj.com/general-interest/companies/news/55373597/shell-to-expand-canadian-operations-with-164-billion-acquisition-of-arc-resources

US upstream M&A hits $38 billion in 1Q26 before volatility temporarily pauses the market

https://www.enverus.com/newsroom/u-s-upstream-ma-hits-38-billion-in-1q26-before-volatility-temporarily-pauses-the-market/

International upstream M&A stuck at historic low

https://www.enverus.com/newsroom/international-upstream-ma-stuck-at-historic-low/

Upstream deal value falls 83% as oil price uncertainty widens the buyer-seller gap

https://www.rystadenergy.com/insights/upstream-deal-value-falls

Iran war impact on global oil markets

https://www.ogj.com/IranWar

In this Insights episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, Head of Content Chris Smith talks with Woodrow Winchester III, manager of University of Texas at Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering Petroleum Extension (PETEX).

PETEX is a continuing education program for oil and gas professionals across the industry’s upstream, midstream, downstream, and health, safety & environment (HSE) segments. It offers a combination of instructor-led training in a variety of settings—including bespoke on site courses—and self-study e-learning programs covering topics from exploration and well control to refining and transportation.

During the conversation, Chris and Woodrow talk about the evolution of PETEX’s mission over its decades of operation, Rig School (the star of its current lineup), and the program’s approach to emerging energies such as hydrogen. The two also consider the continued role of in-person training and knowledge-housed-in-humans in the face of an ever-expanding universe of artificial intelligence.

https://petex.utexas.edu/

www.linkedin.com/company/utpetex/

https://www.facebook.com/UTPETEX/

Email for questions, instructors, or company inquiries: [email protected] 

Strait of Hormuz disruptions are tightening global oil and LNG markets, with recovery expected to remain slow even if conflict eases. Ongoing security risks, damaged infrastructure, and constrained shipping capacity are limiting exports, while clearing waterways and restoring normal tanker flows could take months.

Recovery will vary across Gulf producers. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are better positioned due to stronger domestic supply chains, while Iraq and Kuwait face delays tied to reliance on imported equipment and foreign expertise. Global shortages of specialized energy components are expected to further extend timelines.

The result is a sustained global supply deficit, with inventories declining and limited response from non-OPEC+ producers, keeping market conditions tight well into 2026.

The 1973 Oil Embargo broke forecasting models that weren't built to absorb it. The shale revolution rewrote supply elasticity assumptions entirely. And as of April 2026, the US exported more crude oil than it imported for the first time since World War II.

In this Then & Now episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, OGJ Statistics Editor Laura Bell-Hammer connects those data points into a 50-year story about how oil and gas forecasting has been continuously rebuilt by the forces it failed to anticipate—and what that means for reading the market today.

In this Insights episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, upstream editor Alex Procyk delivers an in-depth technical and commercial overview of Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale play, one of the world’s largest unconventional oil and gas resources—and one that continues to punch below its weight in total production.

Procyk argues this is less a reflection of rock quality and more a result of development pace, infrastructure, and operational complexity. He also outlines why Vaca Muerta’s location—far from geopolitically sensitive supply routes—could make it increasingly important in global energy markets.

Despite resource estimates rivaling or exceeding major US shale plays, Vaca Muerta produces only a fraction of their total output. Procyk argues this is less a reflection of rock quality and more a result of development pace, infrastructure, and operational complexity. With major pipeline projects under way and LNG export capacity taking shape, Vaca Muerta may be poised to play a much larger role in global oil and gas supply.

“On a per‑well basis, Vaca Muerta is one of the most productive unconventional plays on the planet.”

“It’s a massive resource, but it hasn’t really been pushed yet.”

“The geology isn’t uniformly great—but where it’s good, it’s very good.”

“Managing risk versus reward isn’t a flaw in the process—that’s engineering.”

“Vaca Muerta is about as far away from the Strait of Hormuz as you can get, and that matters.”

In this Market Focus episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, Conglin Xu, managing editor, economics, takes a look into the LNG market shock caused by the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the sudden loss of Qatari LNG supply as the Iran war continues.

Xu speaks with Edward O’Toole, director of global gas analysis, RBAC Inc., to examine how these disruptions are intensifying global supply constraints at a time when European inventories were already under pressure following a colder-than-average winter and weaker storage levels.

Drawing on RBAC’s G2M2 global gas market model, O’Toole outlines disruption scenarios analyzed in the firm’s recent report and explains how current events align with their findings. With global LNG production already operating near maximum utilization, the market response is being driven by higher prices and reduced consumption. Europe faces sharper price pressure due to storage refill needs, while Asian markets are expected to see greater demand reductions as consumers switch fuels.

O’Toole underscores the importance of scenario-based modeling and supply diversification as geopolitical risk exposes structural vulnerabilities in the LNG market—offering insights for stakeholders navigating an increasingly uncertain global gas landscape.

In this Then & Now episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, Managing Editor and Content Strategist Mikaila Adams reconnects with Deborah Byers, nonresident fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies and former EY Americas industry leader, to revisit a set of questions first posed in 2017.

In 2017, the industry was emerging from a downturn and recalibrating strategy; today, it faces heightened geopolitical risk, market volatility, and a rapidly evolving technology landscape.

The conversation examines how those earlier perspectives have aged—covering oil price bands and the speed of recovery from geopolitical shocks, the role of US shale relative to OPEC in balancing global supply, and the shift from scarcity to economic abundance driven by technology and capital discipline.

Adams and Byers also compare the economics and risk profiles of shale and offshore development, including the growing role of Brazil, Guyana, and the Gulf of Mexico, and discuss how infrastructure and regulatory constraints shape market outcomes.

The episode further explores where digital transformation—particularly artificial intelligence—is delivering tangible returns across upstream operations, from predictive maintenance and workforce planning to capital project execution. The discussion concludes with insights on consolidation and scale in the Permian basin, the strategic rationale behind recent megamergers, and the industry’s ongoing challenge to attract and retain next‑generation talent through flexibility, technical opportunity, and purpose‑driven work.

In 2017, Adams sat down with Byers—who was then a managing partner in Ernst & Young's Houston office and led the Southwest Transaction Advisory Services and the firm's US energy practice—to talk about her 30-year career with EY and her view of the industry going into 2017. Take a look back and review the interview that spurred the podcast.   

In this bonus episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, Head of Content Chris Smith is joined by Jim Krane, the Diana Tamari Sabbagh Fellow in Middle East Energy Studies and Center for Energy Studies Lead for Energy and Geopolitics in the Middle East at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

The two discuss the regional political forces shaping the Iran war so far, exactly how vulnerable the Strait of Hormuz is, and—shifting inland—what’s in it for the Kurds.

In this Then & Now episode of the Oil & Gas Journal ReEnterprised podcast, Laura Bell-Hammer examines how US crude oil imports have evolved from structural dependence in the mid-1990s to today’s model of strategic grade optimization.

Using historical and current data, the episode traces how refinery configuration, shale-driven production growth, regional pipeline integration, and shifting geopolitics reshaped US trade flows over three decades. From OPEC’s dominant role in 1995 to Canada’s system-critical position today and the reemergence of Venezuelan barrels under evolving sanctions policy...this episode explores how long-cycle capital investment and policy decisions continue to influence refinery economics and supply strategy.