Antero Midstream Buys HG Energy Gas Gathering Assets for $1.1 Billion, Sells Utica System

Antero Midstream will acquire HG Energy’s Marcellus gas gathering and midstream assets for $1.1 billion while divesting its Utica system for $400 million, realigning operations around core Appalachian infrastructure.

DENVER — Antero Resources Corp. and its affiliate Antero Midstream have unveiled a series of coordinated transactions worth about $3.9 billion, including the $2.8 billion purchase of HG Energy’s Marcellus Shale assets and a $1.1 billion acquisition of related midstream infrastructure, alongside separate sales of non-core Utica properties.

Under the agreements, Antero Resources will acquire the upstream assets of HG Energy II LLC for $2.8 billion in cash plus the assumption of HG Energy’s commodity hedge book. The deal adds roughly 850 million cubic feet equivalent per day of expected 2026 production and 385,000 net acres in West Virginia’s core Marcellus region.

At the same time, the company will sell its Ohio Utica Shale assets for $800 million, with both transactions expected to close in the first half of 2026.

Separately, Antero Midstream will acquire HG Energy’s midstream assets for $1.1 billion and divest its Utica midstream assets for $400 million, effectively mirroring the parent company’s repositioning between the two shale plays.

“These transactions expand our core acreage and enhance our position as the premier liquids developer in the Marcellus,” said Michael Kennedy, President and CEO of Antero Resources. “The acquired assets will also bolster our industry-leading maintenance capital efficiency while providing us with further dry gas optionality for local demand from data centers and natural gas-fired power plants.”

Antero expects to finance the acquisition with a mix of free cash flow, proceeds from the Utica divestiture, and a $1.5 billion underwritten term loan led by Royal Bank of Canada and JPMorgan Chase Bank.

The combined transactions are expected to generate about $950 million in synergies over 10 years, extend inventory life by five years, and reduce Antero’s cash cost structure by approximately $0.25 per million cubic feet equivalent.

“This realignment is highly accretive across key metrics including operating cash flow, free cash flow, and net asset value,” said Brendan Krueger, CFO of Antero Resources.

Following the deals, Antero’s pro forma 2026 production is projected at 4.2 billion cubic feet per day, positioning it among the largest natural gas producers in the Marcellus Basin.