Might Texas-born Bob Simpson be looking to build back the Williston Basin powerhouse he created more than a decade ago? Back in 2010, the company Simpson founded in 1986—XTO Energy—merged with Exxon in a $41 billion all-stock deal pronounced one of the largest transactions in history for an independent oil and gas company. ...

Gene Shepherd is packing a punch in the Permian’s southern Delaware hood, where drilling rigs and pumpjacks operated by neighbors like Diamondback Energy, Continental Resources, and XTO, mechanically hum their tunes in cadences that can either lullaby a producer to sleep or keep him mercilessly awake at night....

Rusty Hutson isn’t your typical gas producer. As the founder and CEO of Ala.-based Diversified Energy, he walks his own path—even one he didn’t expect to find again....