COMPANY NEWS Plains Exploration & Production Co. agreed to acquire a 20% interest in Chesapeake Energy Corp.'s Jurassic Haynesville shale play leasehold for $1.65 billion in a new joint venture.

Plains also agreed to fund 50% of Chesapeake's 80% share of drilling and completion costs for future JV wells over several years until another $1.65 billion has been paid.

As a result of the transaction, Plains will hold 110,000 net acres of this leasehold and Chesapeake will hold 440,000 net acres.

In other recent company news:

* Quicksilver Resources Inc. entered into purchase and sale agreements with various private parties to acquire a number of Barnett shale assets for $1.3 billion. Sellers include Chief Resources LLC, Hillwood Oil & Gas LP, and Collins & Young LLC.

* Berry Petroleum Co. agreed to acquire interest in East Texas natural gas production from a consortium of private sellers for $620 million.

* Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp., Toronto, will buy Kappa Energy Holdings Ltd. of Colombia for $168 million.

* Endeavour International Corp. has offered to buy Ithaca Energy Inc. for as much as $150 million in cash and shares to bolster its North Sea assets.

* Oklahoma City-based Quest Resources Corp. plans to buy private PetroEdge Resources LLC for $140 million, closing by mid-July

* A Talisman Energy Inc. unit plans to invest as much as $125 million within 18 months to earn working interest in properties owned by Hallwood Energy LP.

* Arrow Energy, Brisbane, has a major agreement with Shell Exploration Co. BV under which Shell will pay up to $776 million (Aus.) for interests in Arrow's Australian and international coal seam methane (CSM) projects.

* Australian power retailer Origin Energy Ltd., Sydney, has formally rejected the unsolicited $13.8 billion (Aus.) takeover bid from BG Group.

* Dutch energy firm Nuon announced a euro476.7 million deal to acquire the Norwegian North Sea energy assets of ConocoPhillips.

* Canadian Imperial Venture Corp. has agreed to acquire 100%) of the assets of Encore Investments Ltd., including 25 sections of land in southern Alberta and interests in a number of producing oil and gas wells.

* ATP Oil & Gas Corp. acquired a 55% working interest in the Gulf of Mexico's Green Canyon Blocks 299 and 300, collectively known as Clipper.

* InterOil, the Canadian company working in Papua New Guinea, sold its retention leases in the western sector of the country to concentrate on its potentially high yielding Elk-Antelope field in eastern Papua New Guinea.

* ExxonMobil Corp. reported June 12 it will sell its 820 company- owned stations and 1,400 dealer-operated retail outlets due to tightening profits.

* Wholly owned subsidiaries of Ute Energy LLC and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. formed Chipeta Processing LLC in the Unita basin of Utah.

* Eni SPA and Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) renewed their commitment to work closely together on upstream and downstream operations, plus feasibility studies on renewables in Brazil and elsewhere.

* OAO Gazprom opened an office in Algeria, aimed at developing opportunities in Africa and in particular with Sonatrach, the nation's state owned oil company.

Plains-Chesapeake

Chesapeake said it plans to continue acquiring leasehold in the Haynesville shale, and Plains will have the right to 20% participation in any additional leasehold.

The core area of the play spans 3.5 million acres in Texas and Louisiana, Chesapeake told analysts in a conference call.

Acreage on the Texas side may be harder to lease, Chesapeake said. It did not disclose the core area's location but expects core and noncore areas to develop.

Chesapeake said average estimated ultimate reserves in the core area are estimated to average 4.5-8.5 bcf of gas equivalent for each well.

A well in the play now costs $6.5 million. As with other shale plays, these results are likely to improve over time.

The companies currently plan to develop the Haynesville shale using 80-acre spacing, which could support the drilling of as many as 6,875 horizontal wells on the leasehold.

Chesapeake is running five operated rigs in the Haynesville shale play and anticipates operating at least 12 rigs by yearend 2008, at least 30 rigs by yearend 2009, and as many as 60 rigs by yearend 2010. Under this plan, the companies anticipate drilling at least 600 wells in 3 years.

Quicksilver Resources

Quicksilver is acquiring production, leaseholds, royalties, and midstream assets in Tarrant and Denton counties of Texas.

The properties have net production of 45 MMcfd of gas. Quicksilver estimates that these properties hold 350 bcf of proved gas reserves, of which 40% are proved developed. Quicksilver is paying $1 billion in cash and $307 million in common stock. The acquisitions are scheduled to close in August.

Upon closing, Quicksilver estimates that its total average 2008 production volume will increase to 275 MMcfd of gas equivalent, an 8% increase from earlier estimates.

Berry Petroleum

Berry Petroleum's transaction involves 4,500 net acres in Limestone and Harrison counties. The acquisition, which includes a $20 million gathering system, marks Berry Petroleum's entry into the East Texas basin.

Berry Petroleum of Bakersfield, Calif, will operate the properties upon closing, expected by July 15. The acquisition will add 3 2 MMcfd of gas equivalent to Berry's production from 100 producing wells.

Estimated proved reserves associated with the properties are 335 bcf of gas equivalent, with 29% being proved developed reserves.

Berry identified more than 100 drilling locations targeting stacked pay in various productive zones including the Pettit, Travis Peak, Cotton Valley Sands, Cotton Valley Lime, and Bossier sands.

Pacific Rubiales

Kappa Energy, operating since 1997, holds 747,000 gross acres in nine operating blocks in the Catatumbo, Llanos, and Lower, Middle, and Upper Magdalena basins.

Kappa Energy holds the following net working interests: Abanico block, 22.5% in the production area, 23.8% and 14.8%, respectively, in the Santana and Casablanca exploration areas, and 30.5% in the remaining exploration areas, Alhucema 50%, Arrendajo 32.5%, Cerrito average 75%, Chipalo 50%, Cicuco 100% for gas and oil, Guasimo 100%, Buganviles 49%, and Las Quinchas 50%.

The Abanico contract area includes the main oil producing field, Abanico, making 4,100 b/d, and Ventilador gas field making 4.3 MMcfd. Guasimo, Alhucema, and Arrendajo are in the drilling phase.