Not counting the decade’s largest acquisition deal, the $57-billion Occidental takeover of Anadarko, 2019 saw only $39 billion in oil and gas deals. But if the $11 billion deals in December alone are anything to go by, 2020 is on track to be another major year for M&A in the industry. And it’s all about the Permian basin–still. That’s because the bigger players in the American shale patch are still hunting for cheap assets from their fellow operators who can’t stand the heat of shareholder pressure to deliver cash and profits. What 2019 suggests is that the real M&A activity might just be getting started. While many expected the Occidental-Anadarko deal to spark a flurry of buyouts right away, the timing was just a bit off. The only question now is: What comes next? The $39 billion in 2019 deals outside of the stunning Occidental-Anadarko takeover in April included […]