Oil and gas investment bank Petrie Partners and financial advisory firm Rothschild have joined forces to win business in the wave of corporate debt restructurings rippling across the energy sector, Petrie co-founder Andrew Rapp told Reuters.

The prolonged decline in oil prices has stressed the energy industry, particularly exploration and production and services firms, forcing some companies to restructure their balance sheets, and, in some cases, file for bankruptcy.

This presents an opportunity for Petrie and Rothschild because energy companies typically hire financial advisors to work with creditors and restructure.

Petrie Partners, which is headquartered in Denver and has offices in Houston, brings expertise in oil and gas to the venture, Rapp said. Bankers from Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Petrie Parkman & Co., an energy advisor acquired by Merrill Lynch in 2006, started Petrie Partners in 2011.

Rapp said that the two together could be "powerful" in the current environment.

"Right now (we're) mainly focusing on the upstream names," Rapp said.

Rothschild is known for its restructuring experience, having been involved in the bankruptcies of NII Holdings, the parent of Nextel operators in Latin America, and Apple Inc supplier GT Advanced Technologies.

The firms began planning a collaboration this summer and started pitching companies for business early this fall, Rapp said. They are working on a couple of assignments currently, he added, declining to publicly name them.

Competitors of Rothschild and Petrie Partners have also snapped up many assignments in the oil patch recently. Offshore drillers Vantage Drilling Company and Paragon Offshore Plc hired investment bank Lazard Freres & Co., which has an office in Houston, earlier this year for advice.

Representatives for Rothschild were not immediately available for comment.