OilVoice - Athlon Energy and Apollo Partner to Pursue Investments in Oil and Gas Properties

Athlon Energy and Apollo Partner to Pursue Investments in Oil and Gas Properties

Wednesday, September 01, 2010

Athlon Energy LP has partnered with Apollo Investment Fund VII, L.P. and its parallel investment funds ('Apollo'), which are affiliates of Apollo Global Management, LLC (together with its subsidiaries, 'Apollo Management'), a leading global alternative asset manager, to pursue the acquisition and development of long-lived oil and natural gas properties in the onshore United States.

Athlon's executive management team is led by Bob Reeves, who will assume the role of Chief Executive Officer and President. Prior to Athlon, Mr. Reeves served as Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Encore Acquisition Company (formerly NYSE: 'EAC') and Encore Energy Partners (NYSE: 'ENP') until the two companies were acquired by Denbury Resources in March 2010.

Kevin Treadway, also a founder of Athlon Energy, will serve as a member of the executive management team. Formerly, Mr. Treadway served as an executive officer for Encore Acquisition Company and Encore Energy Partners in the role of Senior Vice President - Land.

The remaining founders and executives of Athlon include former members of the Encore management team, including Bud Holmes, Jennifer Palko, David McClelland and Rusty Plemons as well as Dallas Dobbs, who joins Athlon from a private oil and natural gas company.

Bob Reeves, CEO and President of Athlon, stated:
'We have been very fortunate to assemble a top-notch team of industry professionals who have worked together in a highly successful company over the past decade executing a proven strategy. We plan to continue that same strategy of opportunistically acquiring mature properties that can be further exploited by our vast technical expertise in producing regions such as the Rockies, Permian, Mid-Continent and Ark-La-Tex areas.' Mr. Reeves continued: 'We are proud to partner with a premier private equity fund like Apollo in the creation of Athlon Energy. Apollo Management has significant experience in the global commodities sector and they clearly understand the need to buy right with a focus on the fundamentals while considering underlying macro trends impacting the energy industry.'

Greg Beard, a Senior Partner at Apollo Management, said:
'We are thrilled to back a first-class team of energy industry executives who share our same view towards the domestic oil and natural gas landscape.' Mr. Beard went on to comment, 'Focusing on oil and natural gas assets is consistent with our approach of investing in complex sectors where we seek to appropriately capitalize businesses to withstand market cycles and partner with strong management teams to drive value through operations.'