• Apache Corp., Houston, has acquired the Gulf of Mexico portion of its $1.3-billion acquisition of BP producing properties. Apache paid an adjusted price of $509 million for the Gulf of Mexico properties. The properties are offshore Texas and Louisiana and have estimated proved reserves of 72.2 million BOE. Net current production is approximately 200 million cu. ft. of gas and 19,000 bbl. of liquid hydrocarbons per day. • Progress Fuels Corp., Raleigh, N.C., a subsidiary of Progress Energy, plans to acquire approximately 162 producing gas wells with proven reserves of 195 billion cu. ft. from Republic Energy Inc. and two other privately owned companies for $148 million. The assets include wells north of Fort Worth, Texas, in the Barnett Shale. A smaller portion of the reserves acquired are in east Texas. • Sacramento Municipal Utility District plans to acquire El Paso Corp., Houston, subsidiary El Paso Production Oil & Gas Co.'s interest in the Rosa federal unit in San Juan and Rio Arriba counties, N.M., for $135 million. The assets involved include El Paso's interest in 275 coalbed-methane and conventional-gas wells with current net production of approximately 16 million cu. ft. per day and total proved reserves of 163.4 billion cu. ft. equivalent. The Rosa unit is operated by Williams Production Co. LLC. • Exco Holdings Inc., a company formed by Douglas Miller, chairman, and other members of Exco Resources Inc. management, has a deal to buy out the Dallas-based company for $18 per common share and $18.2625 per preferred. An original offer of $17 per share was renegotiated. Exco's assets are primarily in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alberta. Exco's 2002 production was approximately 1.3 million bbl. of oil, 316,000 bbl. of liquids, and 13.4 billion cu. ft. of gas. Exco proved reserves are estimated at 249.3 billion cu. ft. of gas and 23.1 million bbl. of oil. • TotalFinaElf SA, Paris, plans to sell its interests in 13 shallow-water Gulf of Mexico properties having net production of 4,500 BOE per day. The company is the operator of one of the fields. It will retain exploration rights for horizons below current production depths in two of the assets, after the sale. The buyer's identity and the selling price were not disclosed. • BlackSand Partners LP has acquired mineral rights of the Brea Olinda Field in Orange County, Calif., from Nuevo Energy Co., Houston, for $59 million. Nuevo had a 100% working interest and was operator of the field. Average production is 2,269 BOE per day. Nuevo no longer has oil and gas properties in the Los Angeles Basin. • Black Hills Corp., Rapid City, S.D., has acquired Mallon Resources Corp., Denver, for $53 million including $30.5 million of debt and settlement of out standing hedges. The assets, primarily on Jicarilla Apache Nation land in the San Juan Basin, N.M., had proved reserves at Dec. 31 of 53.3 billion cu. ft. of gas equivalent. Daily production is approximately 12 million cu. ft. of gas equivalent. • Patina Oil & Gas Corp., Denver, has acquired the remainder of Le Norman Partners for $39.8 million in cash and assumption of debt. Le Norman's properties are in Stephens, Garvin and Carter counties of southern Oklahoma. Net proved reserves are approximately 76.7 billion cu. ft. of gas equivalent, comprised of 12.2 million bbl. of oil and 3.5 billion cu. ft. of gas. Net production from the properties is 10.7 million cu. ft. of gas per day. • OGE Energy Corp., Oklahoma City, subsidiary Enogex Products Corp. sold its interest in the NuStar joint venture in Texas to Benedum Gas Partners LP for $37 million. • Rocky Mountain Energy Corp., Houston, plans to purchase a group of properties in Wyoming, Utah, Nebraska and Colorado for $11.2 million. The assets produce 240 bbl. of oil and 2 million cu. ft. of gas per day. Proved reserves are 3.2 million BOE. • Sonoran Energy Inc., Bakersfield, Calif., plans to acquire four properties in California. The oil assets are approximately 20 acres including six producing and one injection well. Production is about 25 bbl. of oil per day. The gas assets consist of a 1.25% working interest in seven wells producing 1 million cu. ft. per day, a 10% working interest in six wells and a water-injection well producing 1 million cu. ft. per day and a 1.41% working interest in four wells producing 1.7 million cu. ft. per day. Additionally, Sonoran Energy plans to acquire a 15% working interest in a southern Californian oil field, producing more than 1,400 bbl. of oil per day. • Imperial Petroleum Inc., Evansville, Ind., plans to acquire 63.3% of Powder River Basin Gas Corp. for $1.37 million in cash and stock. The assets include approximate 12,000 net acres of leases in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming. • American Oil & Gas Inc., Casper, Wyo., acquired interests in Montana and Wyoming from Tower Colombia Corp. and North Finn LLC. The assets include a 50% working interest in 18,000 gross acres in a coalbed-methane prospect in Carbon County, Mont.

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