Reliance Industries Ltd is seeking a buyer for its stake in the Eagle Ford Basin oil and natural gas joint venture with Pioneer Natural Resources Co, a sale that could raise up to $4.5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
Pioneer, which has about 230,000 acres in the Eagle Ford Basin according to its website, sold a 45 per cent interest in the property to Reliance for $1.2 billion in 2010.
The Eagle Ford Basin asset is a three-way joint venture between Reliance, Irving, Texas-based Pioneer and a division of Mexico’s Grupo Alpha. Reliance has appointed Citigroup Inc and Bank of America Merrill Lynch to help sell its 45 per cent stake, the sources said, asking not to be named because the matter is not public. Representatives for Citi and Bank of America declined to comment, while Reliance could not be immediately reached for comment.
The property for sale produces 115 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, with 60 per cent of the production in liquid form rather than gas, one of the people said.