Have a look at the $$ being payed for Eagle Ford shale per acre....

Have a look at the $$ being payed for Eagle Ford shale per acre. Another Asian company joining the shale excitement



(Updates with analyst comments on asset price in seventh paragraph)

By Isabel Ordonez
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

HOUSTON -(Dow Jones)- U.S. oil company Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) said Monday it has signed a $1.55 billion joint-venture agreement with state-run Korea National Oil Corp., or KNOC, for one-third of its Maverick Basin assets in southwest Texas.

The long-awaited deal includes acreage in South Texas's Eagle Ford shale, underscoring the rising interest of Asian oil companies to participate in the U.S. oil-shale boom. The move follows Chesapeake Energy Corp.'s (CHK) agreement in January to sell part of its oil-rich assets in the Niobrara Shale formation in northeast Colorado and southeast Wyoming for $1.3 billion to China's biggest offshore oil producer, Cnooc Ltd. (CEO, 0883.HK)

"We are very pleased to welcome KNOC as our partner in this development and hope we will be able to pursue other investments together in the future," Anadarko President and Chief Operating Officer Al Walker said in a statement.

Under the agreement, which was hinted at by Anadarko months ago during a conference call with analysts, KNOC will get about 80,000 net acres in the oil- rich Eagle Ford shale and about 16,000 additional acres in the gas-rich Pearsall Shale, Anadarko said in a press release.

KNOC's $1.55 billion investment will be dedicated to funding the entirety of Anadarko's 2011 post-closing capital costs in the Maverick basin, and up to 90% thereafter until the carry is exhausted, which is expected to occur by the end of 2013.

KNOC will also reimburse Anadarko for net cash outflows, relative to their acquired interest, which are expected to be approximately $50 million.

"This is a very good deal for Anadarko because the price per acre is very high," said Fadel Gheit, an analyst with Oppenheimer & Co.

Anadarko's shares were trading recently at $79.14 up 2.4%.

Analysts with Raymond James estimated the deal implies KNOC is paying about $ 15,000 per acre, which represents the highest price per acre paid to date in the Eagle Ford, where recent deals were completed for up to $12,000 per acre. The value obtained by Anadarko is also outstanding because a portion of the assets were purchased out of bankruptcy by Anadarko only a year ago for less than $1, 000 per acre, Raymond James said.