Devon: A Man, a Field, an Ox, an Acre

By Paul Sankey Published on May 25, 2026 at 6:28 AM

Greetings, Refusing to chase Hormuz headlines for risk of insanity, I took a wander through the E&P headline of the week: Devon’s record-breaking $2.6 billion Federal Lease buy from the Bureau of Land Management in the prime Permian Delaware Basin, New Mexico. It was a historic sale—sweeping up 16,300 acres at a staggering $161,500 per acre—that triggered me to once again go down a rabbit hole driven by my own interest; sense-checking some old valuation …

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Sunday Day of the Living

By Paul Sankey Published on October 26, 2025 at 7:31 PM

How does value get created and transferred in major energy companies? This past week we had Q3 earnings reports from an interesting representation of key US energy theme companies: Valero in refining, Matador in US exploration and production (E&P), Baker Hughes in transition from oil field service to new technologies, and GE Vernova as a play on “picks and shovels”: for US power demand growth. ~ And the winner was? Not the cheapest (Matador), not …

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Sunday Uncertain Veblen Goods

By Paul Sankey Published on April 27, 2025 at 8:17 PM

Greetings, We can keep it shorter today, as yesterday we sent you a Greg Bordelon thematic special on China energy tariffs, not to mention he beat me this evening and released his Model Portfolio note just now. The China note yesterday I most enjoyed reading & editing, and adding fun asides, from the Delta lounge at LAX on Friday night before I took the red-eye back here to Brooklyn. No wonder I never normally take …

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