Ulster Petroleums Ltd., Calgary, will be taken over by Anderson Exploration Ltd., Calgary, for C$647 million consisting of C$543 million cash and 4.77 million of Anderson shares. Ulster has 90% of production and reserves concentrated in five properties, all of which are in proximity to existing Anderson operations. Ulster operates more than 80% of its total production, has approximately 600,000 net acres of undeveloped land and more than C$600 million in tax pools. Anderson has arranged the underwriting of a C$900-million syndicated credit through a Canadian chartered bank. Anderson expects to reduce some of its debt with proceeds from the sale of its 50% interest in Federated Pipe Lines Ltd. and the sale of some noncore oil and gas properties. BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. and Newcrest Capital Inc. are acting as financial advisors to Anderson. Griffiths McBurney & Partners and FirstEnergy Capital Corp are acting as financial advisors to Ulster. • Unocal Canada Resources, a subsidiary of Unocal Corp., El Segundo, Calif., is offering C$10.10 per share for the approximately 21.9 million shares (52%) of Northrock Resources Ltd. it does not already own. Unocal Canada acquired its existing 19.6 million shares (48%) of Northrock in 1999. • CMS Energy Corp., Dearborn, Mich., has sold all of CMS Oil & Gas Co.'s properties in Michigan, including the stock of Terra Energy Ltd., to Fort Worth-based Quicksilver Resources Inc., for approximately $163 million. The sale is part of CMS' plans to sell or have agreements to sell at least $600 million of nonstrategic assets by the end of April 2000. The sale includes more than 180,000 net leasehold acres producing about 49 million cu. ft. of gas per day equivalent in the Antrim Shale fields as well as interests in Niagaran and Praire du Chien wells. • Seneca Resources Corp., Buffalo, N.Y., a wholly owned subsidiary of National Fuel Gas Co., will acquire Tri Link Resources Ltd., for C$340 million, which includes assumed debt. The offer is a 40% premium. Tri Link officers have agreed to tender their shares. Tri Link has also agreed to pay a C$6.3 million noncompletion fee to Seneca under certain circumstances. • Samson Canada Ltd., Calgary, a subsidiary of Tulsa-based Samson Investment Co., will acquire Calahoo Petroleum Ltd. for C$2.90 per share in cash, a 73.3% premium over Calahoo's average closing price. In addition, Samson will acquire all preferred shares for C$1.05 per share in cash. The transaction value, including assumed debt, is approximately C$140.0 million. Calahoo directors and officers, representing approximately 12% of the fully diluted shares, have agreed to enter into lock-up agreements to tender to the offer. Calahoo has also agreed to pay a C$4.4 million noncompletion fee to Samson under certain circumstances. • Louis Dreyfus Gas Corp., Oklahoma City, plans to buy the oil and gas assets of Costilla Energy Inc. for $100 million. The properties are primarily in South Texas, including Lavaca County, where the company has already experienced drilling success, and also in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeast New Mexico. Costilla filed for bankruptcy reorganization in 1999. The acquisition will be subject to normal and customary approval by the bankruptcy court and other governmental authorities. • Bargo Energy Co., Houston, has acquired selected producing properties in the Permian Basin, East Texas and Midcontinent from Texaco for $161.1 million. Aggregate current net production from the properties totals approximately 9,000 bbl.of oil and 11 million cu. ft. of gas per day. Bargo now has proven reserves of approximately 75 million equivalent bbl.of oil. • Marathon Oil Co., Houston, has closed an agreement with Texaco Inc., White Plains, N.Y., to assume ownership of Texaco's oil producing properties in Wyoming's Big Horn Basin. These properties produce approximately 5,500 BOE per day. In return, Texaco will receive producing properties from Marathon in southwest Wyoming and northwest Colorado, as well as cash. These properties produce approximately 3,600 BOE per day. • Occidental Petroleum Corp., Los Angeles, has completed the acquisition of Arco Long Beach Inc., owner of the Long Beach Unit's operating contractor, THUMS. The acquisition adds approximately 98 million bbl. of net oil reserves and approximately 30,000 bbl. per day of net oil production to Occidental's California operations. • Occidental Petroleum Corp. , Los Angeles, has completed the sale of its 29.2% stake in Canadian Occidental Petroleum Ltd. for approximately C$1.2 billion. Of Occidental's 40.2 million shares of CanOxy, 20.2 million were sold to the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board and 20 million to CanOxy. Occidental and CanOxy exchanged their respective 15% interests in joint businesses of approximately equal value, resulting in Occidental owning 100% of an oil and gas operation in Ecuador and CanOxy owning 100% of a sodium chlorate operation in Canada and Louisiana. • New Orleans-based Energy Partners Ltd., a private independent, has closed its purchase of the East Bay Field in the Gulf of Mexico from Ocean Energy Inc. for $86 million. ELP acquired the 100% interests on March 31. The transaction was funded with the recent equity investment by Evercore Capital Partners LP in EPL and by EPL's existing bank credit facility. The East Bay Field is 89 miles southeast of New Orleans in water of 85 feet or less. EPL assumed operatorship of the field, which includes 25 platforms and 346 active wells. The purchase included 3-D seismic data over the entire area. • Belco Oil & Gas Corp., New York, has purchased properties for $65.8 million from undisclosed sellers. The primary assets acquired are oil-producing in the Lodgepole Field, N.D., and gas properties in the Elm Grove Field, La. The acquisitions add approximately 4.8 million bbl. of oil and 52.5 billion cu. ft. of gas reserves to Belco's proved reserve base. Current net production from the properties is 2,350 bbl. of oil and 6.2 million cu. ft. of gas per day, or 20.3 million cu. ft. of gas equivalent per day. • 3Tec Energy Corp., Houston, will acquire properties in East Texas for $55 million from an undisclosed private seller. The properties are in the Glenwood and White Oak fields in Gregg and Upshur counties, Texas, and produce from the Cotton Valley formation. They have estimated total net proved reserves of 69.2 billion cu. ft. of gas equivalent, 92% gas. Current net daily production is 9.6 million cu. ft. of gas and 144 bbl.of oil. Approximately 53% of the reserves are proved producing. The acquisition will increase 3Tec's total proved reserves to 308 billion cu. ft. of gas equivalent and increase daily production to 52 million cu. ft. of gas and 3,400 bbl. of oil. • Equitable Resources, Pittsburgh, Pa., has combined its Gulf of Mexico assets with Denver-based Westport Oil and Gas Co. and has received approximately $50 million in cash and a significant minority interest in the combined company. Westport is a private independent with production in the Rockies, Midcontinent and Gulf Coast. The Gulf Coast operations for the combined company will be based in Houston. • Kerr-McGee Corp., Oklahoma City, will acquire a 50% participation interest in Calgary-based Canadian 88 Energy Corp.'s 100% East Coast offshore Nova Scotia holdings for US$10.5 million. Kerr-McGee will become operator and replace US$6.5 million of work commitment promissory notes previously filed by Canadian 88 with the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board. Kerr-McGee will also assume US$1.5 million of future seismic processing costs related to the project. The licenses are approximately 100 miles southwest of Sable Island developments in 500 to 9,200 feet of water and cover more than 1.5 million acres. Kerr-McGee Offshore Canada Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Kerr-McGee Corp., will operate all four licenses with 50% interest. Canadian 88 will retain the remaining interest. • McMoRan Exploration Co., New Orleans, and Halliburton Co., Dallas, have formed an alliance to conduct operations for McMoRan's major new oil and gas exploration and development program in the Gulf of Mexico. McMoRan acquired, from Texaco Exploration & Production, the right to explore 89 oil and gas tracts and has also purchased Shell Offshore Inc.'s interest in 56 exploratory leases, all in the Gulf of Mexico. McMoRan and Halliburton will develop an organizational structure to include both companies' personnel and technical consultants. Halliburton Energy Services, Brown and Root Energy Services and Landmark Graphics Corp., all business units of Halliburton Co., will supply products and services to the alliance. This integrated team will carry out McMoRan's oil and gas activities. Chase Securities Inc. assisted McMoRan in forming the alliance, and will arrange a $50-million bank facility for McMoRan's use in funding the exploration program. • Abraxas Petroleum Corp., San Antonio, has sold the assets held by Abraxas Wamsutter, as well as certain other contiguous assets, for approximately $34 million. The sale included interests in 57 gas wells and gross leasehold of approximately 15,000 acres. The properties are in Sweetwater and Carbon counties, Wyo. The buyer of the properties is Samson Resources Co., a private Tulsa independent. The sale will result in Abraxas booking a gain in the first quarter of 2000 of $33 million with a corresponding increase in book equity. Proceeds will be used to fund Abraxas' 2000 capex program, which is focused primarily on horizontal exploitation of existing properties. • Privately held Hilcorp Energy ILP has completed the purchase of Sheridan Field in Colorado and Lavaca counties, Texas, from Shell Exploration & Production Co. for $30 million. The field includes interest in 33 active operated wells. Current net production from the well is 90 bbl.of oil per day and 4.5 million cu. ft. of gas per day. • Matrix Oil & Gas Inc. has sold $28.5 million in common and preferred stock to affiliates of EnCap Investments LLC in exchange for cash and certain limited partnership interests. • Key Energy Services Inc., East Brunswick, N.J. has agreed to sell a part of its future production from its Odessa Exploration Inc. subsidiary to a financial buyer for $20 million. The forward sale allows Key to monetize a portion of this noncore asset, to lock in favorable futures prices for oil and gas, and to retain significant upside on the remaining reserves. The forward sale represents approximately 10% of Odessa's total proved reserves and 20% of its total proved developed producing reserves. In addition, Key has cancelled its agreement with an investment banker to explore a sale of Odessa. • Pioneer Natural Resources Co., Dallas, has agreed to sell back to Prize Energy Corp. 1,380,446 common shares for $18.6 million. Pioneer has converted its 4.1 million shares of Prize Series A convertible preferred stock to Prize common stock on a one-for-one basis. The preferred stock and other cash consideration were paid to Pioneer in connection with the sale of certain properties to Prize during 1999. Pioneer's remaining 2,637,715 common shares of Prize will represent ownership in Prize of 19.9% with a market value of $45.5 million based on the closing market price of Prize stock on March 27. • Tri Link Resources Ltd., Calgary, is selling certain producing assets in the Seal area of north-central Alberta for C$22.1 million. The assets include approximately 24 billion cu. ft. of proven gas reserves, gas plants and related production infrastructure. The proceeds will be applied to reduce the company's senior bank debt, which after closing is anticipated to be approximately C$75 million. Griffiths McBurney & Partners acted as financial advisor to Tri Link. Tri Link is retaining its 100% interest in the Seal/Otter Slave Point oil exploration project comprising approximately 155,000 net acres of undeveloped land. • Exco Resources Inc., Dallas, has acquired interests in eight gas wells in the Gomez Field in Pecos County, Texas. The properties were purchased in a partnership, which was created to acquire the assets. Exco and its subsidiaries own 51% of and serve as general partner for the partnership. Exco will be operator of five of the wells. Exco's $6.9-million investment in the partnership was funded with approximately $3.5 million of cash and $3.4 million of bank financing. Exco has arranged a $25-million senior credit facility with an initial borrowing base of $7 million for the partnership from a commercial bank. Exco's net interest in the properties is estimated to be approximately 12.6 billion cu. ft. of gas and its current net daily production from the wells is approximately 1.8 million cu. ft. of gas. • Preston, Reynolds & Co. Inc., Denver, has sold substantially all of its assets to WBI Holdings Inc., the pipeline, energy services and oil and gas production subsidiary of Bismarck, N.D.-based MDU Resources Group Inc. The value of the transaction, which was completed with cash and stock, was not disclosed. The assets transferred to WBI include more than 187,000 net mineral acres under lease in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming and Montana. The acquisition adds a net gas reserve potential in excess of 1 trillion cu. ft. to WBI's gas reserves. The management of PR&C will become employees of WBI and will continue to develop and operate the assets. They will also assume operational responsibility for certain other WBI gas assets. • The Exploration Co., San Antonio, has acquired 95,000 acres on the Farias Ranch contiguous to Blue Star Oil & Gas Ltd.'s Chittim Ranch Lease and southeast of TXCO's existing acreage block. The lease was granted by the Ewing Halsell Foundation, giving TXCO a 100% leasehold interest. There are no drilling obligations for six years and initial geologic interpretation indicates that multizone production potential exists, including a deep Jurassic structure below 16,000 feet, the company reports. Intermittent shallow production began on the Farias Ranch more than 40 years ago. At this time, TXCO does not own any rights above the San Miguel formation in approximately 9,000 acres under the lease. • Petrominerals Corp., Foothill Ranch, Calif., has signed a nonbinding letter of intent to purchase the stock of Hillcrest Beverly Oil Corp. from a private company. Hillcrest operates production from two sites in Los Angeles. Current production is from 14 active wells. Petrominerals has identified several drilling locations and expects to initiate drilling operations in this quarter.