Matador Resources Adds 16,000 Delaware Basin Acres in $1.28B Deal

Matador Resources Adds 16,000 Delaware Basin Acres in $1.28B Deal

Matador Resources has agreed to buy Permian basin operator Paloma Permian LLC for $1.275 billion in cash, World Oil reports, adding 16,235 net undeveloped acres in Eddy and Lea counties, New Mexico.

Market Impact

The Paloma acquisition, from EnCap Investments portfolio company Paloma, includes producing properties expected to average roughly 11,100 boe/d (57% oil) in the third quarter of 2026. The deal also brings an estimated 55 MMboe of proved reserves and more than 156 net drilling locations across the Bone Spring and Wolfcamp formations. Matador expects the transaction to close in the fourth quarter of 2026.

In a separate move, Matador is acquiring largely undeveloped acreage from Ridge Runner Resources II, another EnCap portfolio company, to grow its position in the Woodford formation across West Texas and southeast New Mexico. Combined with earlier deals, that brings Matador’s Woodford holdings to about 50,000 contiguous net acres and pushes its total Delaware basin footprint to roughly 240,000 net acres. The Ridge Runner deal adds more than 150 operated Woodford drilling locations, and Matador said longer laterals and larger development programs from the combined acreage could cut well costs by 30% to 40% over the next 12 to 18 months.

The expansion follows strong early results from Matador’s Rae’s Creek exploratory well, which posted an initial 24-hour production rate of more than 2,200 boe/d, 72% oil. The company said the well is outperforming the average Woodford well in Texas by about 20% on a 60-day cumulative oil production basis. “Matador is excited to announce the expansion of our Delaware basin asset base with these assets from Paloma,” said Joseph Wm. Foran, founder, chairman and CEO of Matador, adding that the Rae’s Creek results confirm the Woodford formation’s commercial viability in southeast New Mexico.

What It Means for Subcontractors

• Drilling and completion crews working Eddy and Lea counties, New Mexico, should expect activity to ramp once the Paloma deal closes in Q4 2026, given the 156-plus net drilling locations coming into Matador’s inventory.
• Pressure pumping and frac crews serving the Woodford play in West Texas and southeast New Mexico have a new target: more than 150 operated locations from the Ridge Runner acquisition, layered onto Matador’s existing 50,000-net-acre Woodford position.
• Matador’s stated goal of cutting well costs 30% to 40% over the next 12 to 18 months signals pressure on drilling contractors and service providers to bid competitively on longer-lateral, larger-scale development programs rather than legacy single-well jobs.
• Midstream and gathering subcontractors should note the acquired Paloma properties are already producing about 11,100 boe/d, meaning tie-in and production support work could start immediately after the Q4 2026 close rather than waiting on greenfield development.
• Firms with Bone Spring and Wolfcamp experience are well positioned, since those formations account for the bulk of the 55 MMboe in proved reserves added through the Paloma transaction.