NEW YORK—U.S. oil and gas dealmaking fell to $12 billion last quarter, down from the first quarter and nearly a third of the $34.8 billion in the same period a year ago, as commodity price volatility left buyers and sellers clashing over asset values, according to data released by energy analytics firm Enverus on Thursday.
“The spike in commodity prices that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine temporarily stalled M&A as buyers and sellers disagreed on the value of assets,” said Andrew Dittmar, a director at Enverus Intelligence Research.
U.S. benchmark crude oil futures prices surged to more than $123 a barrel in early March following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but prices have since cooled as recession worries moved to the forefront. But last quarter’s high prices prompted M&A interest from private equity firms and spurred some deals, Dittmar said. Private equity sellers made up about 80 percent of quarter’s total deal value, Enverus data showed….