Crimson Exploration and Contango Oil announced the companies will merge at the end of April. The new Contango Oil gains exposure to the Eagle Ford in several counties across South Texas.

The combined company will have the option to develop or explore Eagle Ford acreage in Dimmit, Karnes, Liberty, Madison, and Zavala counties.

While not all of its South Texas acreage is prospective for the Eagle Ford, the company has 51,000 net acres prospective for the Buda, Eagle Ford, and other conventional formations, as well as 26,600 net acres prospective for the Woodbine and Eagle Ford in Liberty County.

Crimson had planned development at 160-acre spacing at the company's Zavala & Dimmit acreage and believes upside exist for 80-acre spacing. Additional wells are planned in Karnes County and exploration potential in Madison County is yet to be explored.

Read the full merger announcement at crimsonexploration.com