Reliance Industries (RIL) on Monday announced its exit from the shale gas business in North America, after it sold the last of its remaining assets in the Eagleford shale fields in Texas, US. Reliance Eagleford Upstream Holding, a wholly-owned step-down subsidiary of RIL, on November 5 agreed to sell some of its upstream shale gas assets in the Eagleford fields to Ensign Operating III LLC, a Delaware based company, at a consideration value higher than the current carrying value of the assets, the company said.
RIL had been selling its shale assets in the US since 2015, when crude oil prices started to drop, making the projects unviable and difficult to operate. Reliance had between 2010 and 2013 bought three upstream oil exploration assets in joint venture with Chevron, Pioneer Natural Resource and Carrizo Oil & Gas; and a midstream joint venture with Pioneer. Total aggregate investments in the three assets have been close to $8.2 billion till 2016.
