ExxonMobil said on May 19 that it signed an agreement with subsidiaries of Denver-based BKV Corp. for the sale of operated and non-operated Barnett Shale gas assets in Texas for $750 million with additional payments contingent on future natural gas prices.

“We are focused on delivering the most competitive returns to our shareholders by developing opportunities with the lowest cost of supply and further strengthening our industry-leading upstream position,” Liam Mallon, president of Exxon Mobil Upstream Co., said in a press release.

“Our subsidiaries have operated in the Barnett Shale safely and responsibly for nearly two decades," Mallon added, "and we are encouraged by BKV’s plans to develop the resource in line with its stated pathway to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.”

Map of assets in the Barnett Shale
(Source: Rextag)

Exxon Mobil removed the Barnett Shale gas assets operated by its subsidiaries XTO Energy Inc. and Barnett Gathering LLC from its development plan in 2020.

The company is looking to sell assets in Asia, Africa and Europe as it as focuses on ventures in Guyana, offshore Brazil and the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico.

As part of the agreement, all employees with Exxon Mobil subsidiaries in the Barnett Shale will receive full employment offers with BKV. The sale is expected to close in the second quarter of 2022.