OREANDA-NEWS. US oil and gas industry mergers slowed in the first quarter from the previous three months as the steep drop in oil prices blurred the outlook for the sector and companies' growth strategies.

There were a total of 39 deals worth \$34.5bn in the first quarter 2015, according to accounting and consulting firm PwC's quarterly study. That compares to 70 deal worth \$103.5bn in the fourth quarter of 2014, and 60 deals worth \$26.4bn in the first quarter 2014. PwC only takes into account deals worth more than \$50mn.

Corporate deals surpassed asset transactions for the first time since 2010, however, according to PwC.

Many observers expected low crude prices to trigger a wave of energy industry M&A activity, but many producers have been able to tap equity and debt markets to raise cash. Continental Resources raised \$2.5bn in February under its existing credit facility, for example, while Marathon raised its revolving credit facility to \$3bn through 2020 from \$2.5bn.

Most chief executives ruled out more M&A as valuations still remain high, fueled in part by Shell agreeing to acquire BG Group at a significant premium in a \$70bn deal.

"I'm not sure that [the Shell-BG deal] is the beginning of a lot of additional consolidation in our industry," Anadarko's chief executive Al Walker said recently. "But in January I thought we would be in the trough for a lot longer and it looks we are coming out of it a little sooner from a pricing point."

There were 26 corporate deals worth \$30.4bn compared with 13 asset deals worth \$4.1bn in the first quarter, according to PwC, which accounted for 67pc of the total deal volume and 88pc of the total value. This included two midstream megadeals of over \$1bn. Overall, there were four megadeals worth \$23bn, representing 67pc of the total value.

Total upstream deal activity dropped significantly, accounting for 12 transactions worth \$3.6bn. That's a fall of 60pc and 71pc in deal volume and value, respectively, compared to a year earlier. Also, the total number of oilfield services deals fell by 77pc, to three, and fell by 94pc in value to \$384 mn. The total number of downstream deals remained the same at two while the value decreased 26pc compared to a year earlier.

There were 22 midstream deals, worth \$29bn in value, rising 47pc in volume and by five-fold in value from a year earlier.

Shale-related deals fell to four, accounted for \$588mn, or 33pc of total upstream deal volume and 16pc of value in the first quarter of 2015.

The most active US shale areas for mergers and acquisitions was the Permian in Texas, with four deals worth \$1.5bn. The Eagle Ford in Texas saw three deals worth \$1.2bn. The Marcellus shale area in Pennsylvania and West Virginia had two deals worth \$567mn, while the Bakken in North Dakota and Haynesville in Louisiana each had one. The Bakken led in overall value, with one deal worth \$3 bn.reserved.