Canada’s ARC Resources announced on July 2 that it had completed its acquisition of condensate-rich Montney shale assets in the Kakwa region of Alberta from Strathcona Resources. The all-cash transaction, which was announced in mid-May, is valued at around CAD1.6bn ($1.2bn).

ARC said the assets, which are “underpinned by a substantial drilling inventory”, also include owned and operated infrastructure. It described the acquisition as reinforcing its position as Canada's largest Montney and condensate producer.

Over the remainder of 2025, ARC expects the assets to yield average production of 35,000-40,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), with output split roughly 50:50 between oil and liquids and natural gas. The company added that it would provide an update to its 2025 guidance in its results for the second quarter of the year, which are due to be released on July 31.

According to the announcement, the acquisition increases ARC's Kakwa production by 24% to more than 210,000 boepd, as well as raising its Montney inventory duration at Kakwa from 12 years to over 15 years. The company noted that it holds a 100% working interest in the acquired acreage and while its development plans for the assets target the Montney, it also retains future inventory in other formations that “could further extend the development runway at Kakwa over the long term”.

On the infrastructure side, the transaction includes 100% ownership of two gas-processing facilities and condensate handling infrastructure. The assets also include a 19% interest in a third-party gas-processing facility with deep-cut natural gas liquids (NGL) recovery.

For Strathcona, this sale is part of three transactions to offload all of its Montney assets for a combined CAD2.84bn ($2.09bn). Strathcona also agreed to sell its Grande Prairie assets to an unnamed buyer and its Groundbirch assets to Tourmaline Oil. In a separate July 2 announcement, Strathcona confirmed that the Groundbirch sale had closed on June 1, while the Grande Prairie sale had also closed on July 2, alongside the Kakwa sale.