Citadel's Apex Said to Buy US Gas Assets from Comstock, Azul

Apex Natural Gas, owned by hedge fund giant Citadel, has agreed to buy natural gas assets in Texas for about $430 million from billionaire Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ Comstock Resources Inc., people familiar with the matter said.

Bloomberg News Devika Krishna Kumar Published Dec 04, 2025

(Bloomberg) — Apex Natural Gas, owned by hedge fund giant Citadel, has agreed to buy natural gas assets in Texas for about $430 million from billionaire Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ Comstock Resources Inc., people familiar with the matter said. 

In a separate transaction, Apex also agreed to buy some Haynesville shale play assets from Azul Resources, LLC, which is backed by private equity firm Carnelian Energy Capital, said the people, who requested anonymity because the information is not public. The value of this deal was not immediately clear.

Apex, an exploration and production company, had just one working rig earlier this year in the Haynesville basin, a natural gas-rich area that spans across parts of Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas. That has already grown to about 9, according to Enverus, an energy data platform. 

“Apex is now the most active operator in the play with nine rigs, eclipsing much larger companies like Expand, Comstock and Aethon,” said Jimmy McNamara, principal analyst at Enverus.

Natural gas demand is projected to boom over the coming years, thanks in part to a massive increase in demand for electricity to run data centers that power artificial intelligence. The forecasts have already sparked a frenzy to acquire assets and are fueling bidding wars.

The two deals are expected to close later this month and in January, respectively, and are estimated to allow Apex to further grow to about 12-16 rigs, the people said.

Comstock, Azul, Carnelian did not respond to requests for comment. Citadel declined to comment.

Comstock in November said that it would sell its Shelby Trough assets, located in eastern Texas, to an undisclosed buyer for $430 million. 

Citadel made one of its most significant investments in US natural gas earlier this year when it agreed to buy Apex, formerly known as Paloma Natural Gas in a deal valued at about $1 billion. 

Historically, hedge funds do not have exposure to the drilling and production side of the industry. But Citadel has become one of the biggest physical natural gas traders in the US in recent years, getting a head start in 2014 when it set up a merchant trading business. The unit helps provide transportation and storage for clients. Buying more production assets allows the firm to further leverage its vast logistics network. 

The United States has been the world’s largest producer of natural gas since 2009 and more recently US natural gas production has increased further, averaging 106 billion cubic feet per day for the first half of 2025, according to estimates from the US government.

US natural gas futures prices surged to $5 for the first time in almost three years this week, as cold weather forecasts added to bullish momentum from AI and demand for liquefied natural gas exports. 

The Haynesville region ranked as the eighth-largest natural gas-producing area in the world in 2023, according to recent US government figures. The shale basin is viewed as a hot spot for gas assets given its proximity to export terminals expected to start up in the next few years. 

Comstock said last month the properties being sold included interests in more than 70 producing wells and about 36,000 net acres that are primarily undeveloped. Comstock’s share of production from these properties was about 9.3 million cubic feet of natural gas per day in September 2025.

Azul has about 17,000 gross acres in Haynesville, the people said. 

Azul Resources is focused on investing in Haynesville shale, according to its website. Carnelian Energy Capital has made $4.6 billion of cumulative capital commitments, it said. The company was formed after the merger of Indigo Natural Resources and Southwestern Energy.