Continental Resources buys 50% of Phoenix Global Resources in Vaca Muerta

US oil magnate Harold Hamm's Continental Resources has agreed to acquire a 50% stake in Phoenix Global Resources, the Vaca Muerta-focused company controlled by Swiss commodity trader Mercuria Energy Group, creating a 50/50 joint venture. The deal, announced Thursday, also incorporates shale interests from José Luis Manzano's Integra Capital. Source: Clarin Source: La Republica

The partners plan to invest more than US$4 billion over five years to triple Phoenix's production from over 28,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to over 100,000. Source: Infobae The combined platform will hold approximately 163,000 net acres across six Vaca Muerta blocks, including Phoenix's Mata Mora and Confluencia assets, Continental's Los Toldos II Oeste, and Bajo del Toro Este. Source: Clarin Source: Infobae

Strategic context

This deepens Continental's Argentine footprint, following its 2025 entry with Pan American Energy and its January purchase of Pluspetrol assets. Source: La Republica The companies highlight the RIGI investment incentive framework for the assets. Source: Infobae Continental CEO Doug Lawler credited President Javier Milei's free-market reforms for enabling the alliance. Source: La Republica

What's next

Once completed, Mercuria and Continental will jointly operate Phoenix, combining Continental's unconventional expertise with Phoenix's local knowledge. Source: Infobae The deal follows Mercuria's earlier US$1.4 billion purchase of a Raizen refinery and Shell gas stations in Argentina. Source: Clarin Source: La Republica