Linn Energy, Inc. was a company engaged in

hydrocarbon exploration Hydrocarbon exploration (or oil and gas exploration) is the search by petroleum geologists and geophysicists for deposits of hydrocarbons, particularly petroleum and natural gas, in the Earth using petroleum geology. Exploration methods Vis ...

. It was incorporated in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

and headquartered in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

. In 2018, the company split into Roan Resources and Riviera Resources. As of December 31, 2017, the company had 1.968 trillion cubic feet equivalent of estimated proved reserves, of which 8% were

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...

, 70% were

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

, and 22% were

natural gas liquids Natural-gas condensate, also called natural gas liquids, is a low-density mixture of hydrocarbon liquids that are present as gaseous components in the raw natural gas produced from many natural gas fields. Some gas species within the raw natur ...

. The company's core assets were in

Western Oklahoma On a simple east/west basis, Western Oklahoma is popularly considered that part of the state west of I-35. I-35 creates a north/south line through the approximate center of the main body of the state (i.e., without regard for the Oklahoma Panhandle ...

. The company also pursued

directional drilling Directional drilling (or slant drilling) is the practice of drilling non-vertical bores. It can be broken down into four main groups: oilfield directional drilling, utility installation directional drilling, directional boring (horizontal dire ...

in the

Mid-Continent oil province The Mid-continent oil field is a broad area containing hundreds of oil fields in Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The area, which consists of various geological strata and diverse trap types, was discovered and e ...

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

North Louisiana North Louisiana (french: Louisiane du Nord), also known locally as Sportsman's Paradise, (a name sometimes attributed to the state as a whole) is a region in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The region has two metropolitan areas: Shreveport-Bossier Ci ...

and

East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region consi ...

History

The company was founded in 2003 by Michael C. Linn. In 2006, the company became a

public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...

via an

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...

that raised over $200 million. In 2007, the company doubled its holdings by acquiring many of the oil and gas assets of Hogshead Spouter and Dominion Energy, mainly in Oklahoma, for $2.05 billion. In 2011, the founder of the company, Michael C. Linn, retired. In March 2012, the company acquired the holdings of BP in the

Hugoton Natural Gas Area Hugoton Gas Field is a large natural gas field in the U.S. states of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Its name is derived from the town of Hugoton, Kansas, near which the Hugoton Field was first discovered. History Natural gas in the Hugoton area wa ...

, the large gas-producing region from southwestern

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

into the

Texas Panhandle The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a square-shaped area bordered by New Mexico to the west and Oklahoma to the north and east. It is adjacent to ...

for $1.2 billion. The purchase included 2,400 active wells on 600,000 acres and a gas processing plant. In June 2012, the company acquired 12,500 acres in the Jonah Field in southwest Wyoming from BP for approximately $1 billion. In February 2013, the company acquired

Berry Petroleum Company Berry Corporation is a company primarily engaged in hydrocarbon exploration in California (78% of 2019 production), the Uintah Basin (17% of 2019 production), and the Piceance Basin (5% of 2019 production). As of December 31, 2021, the company ...

in a stock deal valued at $4.3 billion. In September 2013, the company acquired assets in the Permian Basin for $525 million. In June 2014, the company acquired assets from

Devon Energy Devon Energy Corporation is an energy company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration in the United States. It is organized in Delaware and its corporate operative headquarters are in the 50-story Devon Energy Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Its ...

for $2.3 billion. In August 2014, the company acquired assets in the

from

Pioneer Natural Resources Pioneer Natural Resources Company is an American company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration headquartered in Irving, Texas. It operates in the Cline Shale, which is part of the Spraberry Trend of the Permian Basin, where the company is the larges ...

for $340 million. The company also sold its interests in non-producing acreage in the

Anadarko Basin The Anadarko Basin is a geologic depositional and structural basin centered in the western part of the state of Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle, and extending into southwestern Kansas and southeastern Colorado. The basin covers an area of . By ...

for $90 million. In March 2016, the company missed a debt payment and announced that a

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

filing was likely. On May 11, 2016, the company filed for bankruptcy under

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

. In February 2017, the company completed a financial restructuring, which included the

corporate spin-off A corporate spin-off, also known as a spin-out, or starburst or hive-off, is a type of corporate action where a company "splits off" a section as a separate business or creates a second incarnation, even if the first is still active. Characte ...

and the sale of assets to Hogshead Spouter Company. In May 2017, the company sold its interest in properties in the Salt Creek Field in

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

to Denbury Resources for $71.5 million. In June 2017, the company sold its properties in the Jonah Field for $581.5 million. In September 2017, the company formed Roan Resources, a joint venture with Citizen Energy. In October 2017, the company sold properties in

for $200 million. In 2018, the company split into Roan Resources and Riviera Resources.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Linn Energy 2003 establishments in Texas Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2016 Defunct oil and gas companies of the United States Energy companies established in 2003 Energy companies disestablished in 2018 2018 disestablishments in Texas American companies established in 2003 American companies disestablished in 2018