Denver-based Ovintiv announced this week that it had agreed to sell its Anadarko Basin assets in Oklahoma to an unnamed buyer for $3.0bn in cash.

The announcement comes around two weeks after Ovintiv completed its takeover of NuVista Energy in a cash and stock transaction valued at $2.7bn. The NuVista acquisition, which gave the company additional acreage in Canada’s oil-rich Alberta Montney, combined with the Anadarko Basin sale, illustrates how Ovintiv’s focus is changing. It also represents at least something of a shift back to the company’s roots – it was formerly known as Encana and focused on natural gas production in Canada, before rebranding as Ovintiv and moving its headquarters to the US, while also turning its attention to US shale. Now, the company is offloading more of its US shale assets while bulking up in Canada.

Ovintiv said in its February 17 announcement that the Anadarko Basin sale included roughly 360,000 net acres (1,457 square km), representing “substantially all” of its acreage in the region. In the month up to February 17, production from the assets averaged 90,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), including around 27,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil and condensate and roughly 23,000 bpd of natural gas liquids (NGLs).

"This transaction marks a significant milestone by focusing our portfolio, delivering on our debt target, and unlocking increased returns to our shareholders," stated Ovintiv’s president and CEO, Brendan McCracken. "We have built one of the deepest premium inventory positions in our industry in the two most valuable plays in North America, the Permian and the Montney. This positions us to deliver superior returns for our shareholders for many years to come."

The sale is expected to close early in the second quarter of 2026 with an effective date of January 1, 2026, according to the announcement.

On February 18, Hart Energy reported that the assets were being sold to private investment group Stone Ridge Energy, according to sources familiar with the matter. This has not been publicly confirmed, but comes after Stone Ridge spent at least $3.6bn on upstream acquisitions in 2025.