• Swift Energy Co., Houston, (NYSE: SFY) plans to acquire interests in Dimmit County in South Texas from privately held, Fort Worth-based Crimson Energy Partners LP for $47 million.
The assets include 100% working interest in 5,140 acres on the Briscoe “A” lease adjacent to existing Swift production in its Cotulla area with 34 producing wells with an additional 23 locations identified. Production is from the Olmos and San Miguel formations at depths of 4,500 to 5,000 feet. Swift will operate.
It estimates 13 billion cu. ft. equivalent of proved reserves (70% proved developed) and 3 billion cu. ft. equivalent probable. Future development costs of both the proved undeveloped and probable reserves are estimated to be approximately $12.5 million for an all-in acquisition cost of $3.72 per thousand cu. ft. equivalent of proved and probable reserves. Production averaged approximately 3.7 million cu. ft. equivalent per day net for the first seven months of 2008 (90% gas and gas liquids).
Swift will fund the deal with debt using its credit facility. The acquisition was expected to close by the end of September. The effective date is May 1. Swift focuses on onshore and inland waters reserves in Louisiana and Texas. Crimson holds assets in South and East Texas and is backed by private-equity firm EnCap Investments LP.


• Amen Minerals LLC, a subsidiary of Amen Properties, Midland, Texas, (Nasdaq: AMEN) has acquired a 5% working interest (4% net revenue interest) in certain West Texas properties from Odessa, Texas-based Aghorn Energy Inc. for $1.75 million. Aghorn acquired the assets from ExxonMobil Corp. on June 1, which consist of ExxonMobil’s leasehold interests in approximately 30,000 acres in the Permian Basin known as the Yarbrough and Allen Field.
Amen chief executive Jon Morgan says Amen Minerals will be contracting with Aghorn to operate most of the wells on the properties.

• Pantera Petroleum Inc. (OTCBB: PTPE) has acquired a 43.21% working interest (32.41% net revenue interest) in 21 leases on 651 acres in Texas from Texas-based Lakehills Production Inc. for $350,000 in cash.
The Baker Ranch Well 80 assets are in West Gomez Field in Pecos County. Pantera has an option with Lakehills to acquire additional working interest in Baker Ranch Well 80 up to a 95% working interest (71.25% net revenue interest) and up to 95% working interests in another four wells known as Baker Ranch Sections 74, 77, 78, and 81 on 2,587 acres for approximately $2.2 million.
Originally operated by Chevron USA Inc., the Baker Ranch Well 80 produced approximately 16.8 billion cu. ft. of gas from 1973 until it was plugged in 1992.

• Chesapeake Energy Corp., Oklahoma City, (NYSE: CHK) has closed its acquisition of approximately 13,000 net acres in the Haynesville shale in northwestern Louisiana from International Paper, Memphis, Tenn., (NYSE: IP) for approximately $263 million.
International Paper chairman and chief executive John Faraci says the company will continue to look for opportunities to monetize its remaining U.S. forestlands, real estate and mineral holdings.
The transaction was structured as a like-kind exchange for property associated with IP’s recent acquisition of Weyerhaeuser’s containerboard, packaging and recycling business.

• Vortex Resources Corp., Beverly Hills, Calif., (OTCBB: VTEX) plans to acquire all of the issued and allotted share capital of Sandhaven Securities Ltd. and its underlying oil and gas assets in NT Energy through its exercise option with London-based Blackhawk Investments Ltd. for an undisclosed price.
Sandhaven has about 62% control of NT Energy, which holds rights to mineral leases covering approximately 12,972 acres in the Texas Barnett shale in Parker, Jack and Palo Pinto counties. Sandhaven is a subsidiary of Sandhaven Resources Plc, London, (Plus Markets: SHRP). Blackhawk will exercise its option to acquire the leases and then transfer such leases to Vortex.

• Ridgefield, Conn.-based private investment firm New Stream Capital has acquired an undisclosed working interest in leases held by privately owned, Sugar Land, Texas-based EBR Management LLC for $28.1 million. EBR has oil and gas leases including 91 producing wells and 60 drilling locations covering numerous fields in South Texas and Louisiana. Net production is approximately 130 bbl. of oil and 5 million cu. ft. of gas per day. Estimated net reserves are 21.6 billion cu. ft. of gas.

• Pioneer Natural Resources USA Inc., Irving, Texas, (NYSE: PXD) has acquired Barnett shale assets in Denton and Wise counties, Texas, from Dune Energy Inc., Houston, (Amex: DNE) for $38.1 million.
As of Dec. 31, Dune’s Barnett shale proved developed reserves totaled 19.3 billion cu. ft. equivalent in 35 producing wells, plus six wells with behind-pipe pay awaiting frac stimulation. An additional 13 proved developed locations contain an estimated 14.1 billion cu. ft. equivalent of net reserves.
The Barnett shale reserves represent about 19% of Dune’s total proved reserves. First-quarter 2008 revenue attributable to Dune’s Barnett shale ?operations totaled $7.64 per thousand cu. ft. equivalent, while expenses were $4.36 per thousand cu. ft. equivalent. Dune’s Gulf Coast operations yielded revenue of $12.14 per thousand cu. ft. equivalent, while costs totaled $4.14 per thousand cu. ft. equivalent.
James A. Watt, president and chief executive, says, “This disposition allows Dune to focus its activity on high-rate-of-return projects in the Gulf Coast and develop significant new deeper-pool exploratory projects across our high-quality property base.”
Proceeds from the sale will be used to eliminate the $28.1 million outstanding on Dune’s $40-million revolver, and for general corporate purposes.

• Mainland Resources Inc., Houston, (OTCBB: MNLU) plans to acquire 5,000 net acres in Mississippi and drill the first test well to evaluate Haynesville shale gas potential in the region from an undisclosed seller for an undisclosed price.
Mainland will acquire 100% working interest (75% net revenue interest) in southwestern Mississippi within the Mississippi Interior Salt Basin.
Mainland president Mike Newport says, “We have data that suggests the potential Haynesville shale in this region could be similar in nature to the gas-bearing Haynesville shale in northwestern Louisiana. Our geological team believes that this could be just as productive as the groundwork that’s been laid in the Louisiana play.”
Mainland Resources is on schedule for its first Haynesville test well with joint-venture partner Petrohawk Energy in De Soto Parish, Louisiana. The #1-H Griffith well is stated in the agreement as having a target depth below 10,360 feet in order to test formations. Petrohawk will act as operator on the Griffith.

• Bedford Energy, Oklahoma­ City, Okla., (Pink Sheets: BFDE) Kiowa Oil Co., Pride Pacific Petroleum, Go Green Environmental and Russian Resources Energy Group have acquired 200 acres in the Palo Duro Basin in Floyd, Motley and Swisher counties in West Texas from Plainview, Texas-based West Texas Royalties for an undisclosed price.

• Swiss energy and gas company Avelar Energy Group, Zurich, has acquired additional interest in Falcon Oil & Gas Ltd., Denver, (Toronto Venture: FO) for approximately C$38 million, bringing its stake to 16.11%.
Avelar acquired 44,904,977 shares of Falcon, representing 7.94% of the outstanding shares, in a private transaction. Avelar chief executive Igor Akhmerov says, “We have fundamental belief that the management team of Falcon, together with Exxon and MOL, will bring the company to successful exploration results. Our investment in Falcon is strategic and long-term.”
Falcon has operations in Hungary through subsidiary TXM Oil and Gas Exploration LLC and in Romania through JVX Energy Corp.

• Ameriwest Energy Corp., Casper, Wyo., (OTCBB: AWEC) plans to acquire certain Wyoming oil and gas mineral leases through a right to exercise from Casper, Wyo.-based Muddy Mineral Exploration LLC.
Muddy Mineral was the highest bidder in an auction held by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management for the purchase of a 10-year mineral lease on approximately 240 acres within the area of mutual interest identified as the Geary prospect lands in Natrona and Converse counties, in the southwestern portion of the Powder River Basin.
Ameriwest has a right to first refusal on an 80% net revenue interest subject to the successful issuance of the lease. Pro forma, Ameriwest will have approximately 3,040 gross acres in the prospect.

• Halliburton Co., Houston, (NYSE: HAL) has entered into a definitive agreement with Carbo Ceramics Inc., Irving, Texas, (NYSE: CRR) to buy the assets of Pinnacle Technologies Inc., including the Pinnacle brand, in a deal valued at $137 million. Pinnacle is a leading provider of microseismic fracture mapping services and tilt-meter mapping services.
Pinnacle has monitored more than 12,000 hydraulic-fracture treatments since its founding in 1992. The company’s level of fracture-mapping experience is now being used by operators to overcome the complexities of shale reservoirs across North America, including the Bakken, Barnett, Caney, Fayetteville, Marcellus, Muskwa and Woodford.
The acquisition complements Halliburton’s portfolio of stimulation tech