Anadarko
Petroleum
A multi-basin U.S. independent producer that was a dominant operator in the DJ Basin Wattenberg Field, the Permian, and the Powder River Basin before its 2019 acquisition by Occidental. The Anadarko name remains on countless division orders.
What happened to Anadarko.
A dominant U.S. independent of the 2010s, acquired by Occidental in 2019 and partially divested to Anschutz in 2021. The name persists on owner paperwork.
Anadarko Petroleum was a publicly traded U.S. independent oil and gas producer headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas. For decades Anadarko was one of the largest independent producers in the country, with major positions in the DJ Basin Wattenberg Field, the Permian Basin, the Powder River Basin, the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, and international assets including Mozambique LNG.
The company was acquired by Occidental Petroleum in August 2019 following a high-profile competitive bidding process with Chevron. Despite the 2019 acquisition, the Anadarko name remains a frequently-encountered legacy name on royalty paperwork. Anadarko’s onshore footprint covered hundreds of thousands of mineral owners across the Wattenberg Field, the Permian, and the Powder River Basin.
The disposition of Anadarko’s assets after the Occidental close differs by basin. The DJ Basin Wattenberg position in Weld County, Colorado, and the Permian Basin position in Texas and New Mexico are operated by Occidental today. The Powder River Basin position in Wyoming was separately sold by Occidental to Anschutz Exploration in 2021.
Send us what you have, and we will trace it.
Recent activity, andwhat is behind it.
Material events affecting Anadarko's operating footprint, including the 2019 acquisition by Occidental and the 2021 PRB divestiture to Anschutz.
- 2021Anadarko's Powder River Basin position was sold by Occidental to Anschutz Exploration. Source: industry reporting, July 2021.
- 2019Occidental Petroleum closed acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum following a competitive bidding process with Chevron. Source: Occidental press release, August 8, 2019.
If you receive Anadarko-era paperwork.
Two transactions over the past five years split the legacy Anadarko footprint between Occidental and Anschutz. The Anadarko name persists on legacy paperwork in all three basins.
Anadarko Petroleum existed as an independent public company until August 2019, when Occidental Petroleum closed an acquisition that ended Anadarko’s independent existence. Despite the time elapsed since the close, the Anadarko name remains a frequently-encountered legacy name on division orders, royalty statements, and lease records across the DJ Basin Wattenberg, the Permian, and the Powder River Basin. Anadarko’s onshore footprint covered hundreds of thousands of mineral owners, and re-issuance of all those division orders is a multi-year administrative process.
The disposition of Anadarko’s assets after the Occidental close differs by basin. The DJ Basin Wattenberg position in Weld County, Colorado, and the Permian Basin position in Texas and New Mexico are operated by Occidental today. The Powder River Basin position in Wyoming was separately sold by Occidental to Anschutz Exploration in 2021, so mineral owners in Converse and Campbell counties whose royalty stream traced back to Anadarko-era development now generally receive payment from Anschutz.
If your paperwork still says Anadarko, the underlying mineral interest, royalty rate, and legal description on the division order do not change as a result of either transaction. State regulator well databases confirm operator-of-record status by API number. We are happy to help trace the chain from Anadarko to the current operator if your records make that path hard to follow.
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What peopleactually ask about Anadarko.
Honest answers to the things people most often want to know about post-Anadarko paperwork.
Have minerals tied to
Anadarko Petroleum
today?
If you receive division orders, royalty statements, or correspondence with the Anadarko Petroleum name on it and want help tracing what that means today, send us what you have. We will pull operator-of-record data from the relevant state regulator, identify the current paying operator, and put together a plain-English summary of the chain. No obligation to do anything beyond that.
Information about Anadarko Petroleum on this page is drawn from publicly available sources, including company press releases, SEC filings where applicable, state regulator data, and mainstream news reporting. It is current as of May 2026. Operator ownership, corporate structure, and active basins can change. Verify current status with the operator directly before making any decisions about a lease, division order, or sale.