San Antonio-based Vecino Energy Launches with $200 Million Commitment

Vecino Energy Partners LLC recently partnered with EnCap Flatrock Midstream to support its strategy to acquire, develop and commercialize oil and gas infrastructure.

Based in San Antonio, Texas, Vecino was established in 2022 by a group of industry veterans with decades of experience running E&P, midstream, marketing and heavy product distribution businesses. The company is actively pursuing the acquisition and development of midstream oil and gas assets in the Lower 48, according its website.

On July 19, Vencino said it secured an equity commitment of $200 million from EnCap Flatrock Midstream and Vecino’s management team.

“We are truly excited to work with the EnCap Flatrock team and believe that the alignment of both our investment philosophies, particularly in light of current market conditions, will result in a very productive partnership.”—Wayne Ziegler, Vecino Energy Partners 

“We are pleased to partner with Vecino Energy as the company works to acquire, develop and commercialize oil and gas infrastructure,” EnCap Flatrock Managing Partner Dave Kurtz commented in the company release.

“We have closely followed Vecino’s management team for years,” Kurtz continued, “and we are confident that they will bring a thoughtful approach to energy investment and operations, driven by the team’s extensive and diverse backgrounds, which span across multiple commodities, roles and basins.”

Vecino Energy Partners was founded by former executives and management of BlackBrush Oil & Gas, BP, SemGas and TexStar Midstream to focus on infrastructure development in support of the domestic oil and gas industry.

Most of Vecino’s team have worked together or as counterparts for almost 15 years, according to the company’s website.

“We are truly excited to work with the EnCap Flatrock team and believe that the alignment of both our investment philosophies, particularly in light of current market conditions, will result in a very productive partnership,” said Vecino CEO Wayne Ziegler in the July 19 release.

Vecino President David Ash also commented, “We feel extremely fortunate to be surrounded by some of the best leaders in the business, both on our management team and at the board level.”

Ziegler has extensive leadership experience, including previous roles as Vice President of the Southern Region at Koch Materials, Vice President of SemGas and most recently CEO at Nueces Midstream.

Meanwhile, Ash spent the first half of his career in investment and merchant banking before moving to San Antonio to pursue executive roles at BlackBrush Oil & Gas, TexStar Midstream and Nueces Midstream. 

“We feel extremely fortunate to be surrounded by some of the best leaders in the business, both on our management team and at the board level.”—David Ash, Vecino Energy Partners 

Joining Ziegler and Ash on the Vecino management team are COO Jasen Walshak and Executive Vice President of Strategy and Business Development Nelson Ferries.

Walshak most recently served as COO at Nueces Midstream and prior to that role, he spent over a decade at BlackBrush Oil & Gas in multiple leadership positions, including western division manager. Ferries began his 40-year career as a drilling and field engineer with Gulf Oil and Chevron and later transitioned to business development roles with Chevron, PG&E, Enron and spent nearly two decades at BP Energy Co. before joining the rest of the management team at Nueces Midstream.

Vecino was advised by Kirkland & Ellis LLP, with partner Kyle M. Watson leading the firm’s legal team. Winston & Strawn LLP served as legal counsel to EnCap Flatrock, with partner Isaac E. Griesbaum in the lead role.

Based in San Antonio with offices in Oklahoma City and Houston, EnCap Flatrock Midstream manages investment commitments of nearly $9 billion from a broad group of prestigious institutional investors. The firm is currently making commitments to new management teams from EFM Fund IV, a $3.25 billion fund, according to the release.