Evaluate Energy’s latest M&A review for Q2 2019 shows that $91 billion of new upstream oil and gas M&A deals were secured during the quarter — virtually nine times greater than the disappointing $10.4 billion total value in Q1.

The full quarterly review is available here.

The report shows that spending was considerably boosted by Occidental Petroleum Corporation’s $57-billion acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, which is the largest upstream deal anywhere in the world since 2015. Nonetheless, even excluding this deal and a further $8.8 billion deal in Africa conditional upon the closure of this Anadarko purchase, the total for Q2 still indicates a sharp recovery on Q1 spending looking at the overall dollar values involved.

Source: Evaluate Energy M&A Review – Q2 2019

Looking beyond the headline value of deals, however, the overall deal flow still feels rather subdued. The number of deals with a value greater than $100 million increased compared to Q1, but remained 22 per cent lower than quarterly average counts since 2015.

There is a similar pattern for deals with values greater than $50 million — these were up on Q1 but 35 per cent lower than average over the four-year period.

Source: Evaluate Energy M&A Review – Q2 2019

Report author and senior M&A analyst at Evaluate Energy, Eoin Coyne, expects the second half of 2019 to follow a similar pattern. “Heading into the second half of 2019, this comparatively subdued deal flow is likely to continue,” he said. “Capital discipline and a desire to return value to shareholders are dominant themes in strategies recently declared by the oil industry.”

Evaluate Energy’s quarterly M&A review looks at every major deal around the world and helps you understand the overriding industry trends. This quarter, the report focuses on a succession of significant asset sales in the U.K. North Sea, some important assets changing hands that will impact the fortunes of Canada’s LNG projects on either coast, as well as the recent deal histories of Canadian Natural Resources Limited and Brazil’s Petrobras in their respective core markets.

The full Evaluate Energy quarterly review is available to download here.