Range Resources Corp. tacked on another multimillion-dollar royalty sale on Oct. 21 that brings total asset sales by the Appalachia shale producer to more than $1 billion.

Hit by low commodity prices, the Fort Worth, Texas-based company began divesting overriding royalties in its prized Appalachia leases roughly a year ago to strengthen its business.

On Oct. 21, Range CEO Jeff Ventura said the company had made “substantial progress” in reinforcing its financial strength. In addition to another sale of overriding royalty interest (ORRI), Range increased the committed level of its credit facility and launched a $100 million share buyback program.

“The increase in lender commitments enhances liquidity and demonstrates the resiliency of Range’s assets and business in the current commodity environment,” Ventura said in a statement.

Range said Oct. 21 it had sold an additional ORRI in its southwest Appalachia acreage where the company holds about one half million net acres. An undisclosed buyer agreed to buy a 0.5% proportionately reduced ORRI in a portion of the acreage for gross proceeds of $150 million.

Over the last year, Range has executed on about $1.1 billion in asset sales, according to Ventura.

The company’s first royalty transaction in October 2018 included a proportionately reduced 1% ORRI in Washington County, Pa., for $300 million.

In July, Range revealed two additional royalty assets sales for combined gross proceeds of $600 million. The buyers, Lime Rock Resources and Franco-Nevada Corp., separately agreed to purchase a 2% proportionately reduced ORRI in Range leases. The royalties applied to 350,000 net surface acres in southwest Appalachia.

In addition, Range closed a $34 million sale of certain non-producing acreage in Pennsylvania in June.

Similar to the company’s previous royalty sales, the sale of ORRI announced on Oct. 21 applies to 350,000 net surface acres in southwest Appalachia. Range has about one half million net acres and about 3,700 undrilled core Marcellus wells in southwest Appalachia.

Annualized cash flow associated with this ORRI sale is about $12 million, based on first-half 2019 pricing. Range said its annualized interest expense is expected to decline by about $7 million, offsetting a “significant amount” of the cash flow associated with the royalty sale.

According to the company release, the transaction closed in September and is effective as of March 1.

Analysts with Capital One Securities Inc. said the deal reduced the firm’s net debt to EBITDA multiple for year-end 2019 to 3.2 times from the prior 3.4 times.

The committed level of the Range credit facility increased to $2.4 billion from $2 billion. The credit facility’s borrowing base of $3 billion and its maximum facility amount of $4 billion were both unchanged in the fall redetermination.

The company’s $100 million share buyback program was approved by the Range board to begin in October and will be executed “at times deemed appropriate by Range management.” Share repurchases will be funded by asset sale proceeds, free cash flow generation and potential financial transactions, the company release said.