Reuters wants you to know that crude oil M&A has face-planted and mostly will stay that way for the rest of the year. Dealmaking in 1Q moved slower than a Three-toed sloth with chronic back pain, racking up $17 billion in acquisitions compared to $144 billion in the same period in 2023. As natural gas starts to get its groove back, producers of both stripes are exercising downturn strategies triggered by prices, trade policies, and geo-political and market volatility.

Reese Energy Consulting today is following the latest on the topic of oil and gas M&A, a vital catalyst for growth and expansion depending on your side of the fence. According to Reuters, M&A in the crude oil sector could be sharing a pickup bed with tumbleweeds for most of 2025 with a new mantra of “Value over Volume.”

Bur natural gas and midstream could be the M&A winners going forward. Between rising prices, record-breaking LNG exports, power generation demand, AI and data centers, and surging processing capacity, it’s a “Hello, lover” moment. Still, the Exercise Caution flag waves uncertainty here, too. Although there’s one potential acquisition we’re keeping our eyes on.

As the Haynesville’s second-largest gas producer, just a spit away from LNG Gulf Coast facilities, Atheon Energy announced last November it was exploring options to sell its Haynesville upstream and midstream assets for $10 billion. Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC in April reported it’s now considering a bid for Atheon following its 2024 purchase of a 11.7% stake in NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG project in Texas.