Pin Oak Energy Partners LLC continued to bulk up its Utica Shale position in the Appalachian Basin with a recent acquisition from Protégé Energy III LLC, which is backed by EnCap Investments.

The Akron, Ohio-based company said April 17 it tacked on nearly 10,000 net acres across Washington and Noble counties, Ohio, and Wood County, W.Va., as part of its deal with Protégé Energy III. The value of the transaction wasn’t disclosed.

The Protégé deal follows Pin Oak’s purchase earlier this month of a chunk of Utica assets from Royal Dutch Shell Plc affiliate, SWEPI LP, also for an undisclosed value. That acquisition included mostly HBP acreage covering 43,000 acres prospective for Utica Shale development in located in Mercer, Crawford and Venango counties, Pa.

Both transactions are a part of an aggressive growth strategy Pin Oak is currently pursuing. In a statement on April 3, Mark Van Tyne, Pin Oak Energy’s co-founder and chief business development officer, also noted Pin Oak had “multiple deals in our pipeline.”

Since its launch in 2015, Pin Oak Energy has built a substantial operating position focused on conventional and unconventional assets in the Appalachian Basin through acquisitions and strategic partnerships. Pro forma for its most recent deal, the company’s position includes at least 178,000 net acres and over 125 miles of midstream assets across Appalachia.

As part of the Protégé deal, Pin Oak picked up the producing Caywood A 1H Utica well in Washington County, Ohio, plus the Big Red pad location and 60 square miles of proprietary 3-D seismic. The company also acquired a four-mile gathering line connecting into Blue Racer Midstream’s Washington County Connector line, according to the Pin Oak press release.

Protégé Energy III is a Tulsa, Okla.-based oil and gas company founded in 2013 through partnerships with EnCap Investments. The company currently focuses on its Eagle Ford Shale position in South Texas.

Emily Patsy can be reached at epatsy@hartenergy.com.

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