Friday, October 31, 1997

Win-Tex Drilling sold to New Jersey firm

By BRIAN BETHEL / Staff Writer

Abilene's Win-Tex Drilling Co., Inc., is being sold to one of the nation's largest well service and oilfield trucking companies.

Key Energy Group, Inc., a New Jersey-based company with offices in the Permian Basin, signed a letter of intent Oct. 23 announcing it planned to acquire the company's drilling operation and Win-Tex Trucking Corp. for $5.3 million in cash.

That price includes assumption of debt, but excludes working capital.

The deal is being worked via a stock transaction, said Lunette Jones, co-owner of the business with her husband, Bob Jones.

"They're buying the company lock, stock and barrel," she said. "They're very interested in expanding in the exact areas Win-Tex can offer them" growth.

Key Energy plans to have the necessary steps toward acquisition completed "as soon as possible," said Ken Huseman, executive vice president and chief executive officer.

"We have been wanting to expand our shallow drilling business, and Win-Tex was ideal," he said. "They are well-known and highly respected, and that was just the sort of company we were looking to acquire."

"Shallow drilling" constitutes drilling no more than 10,000 feet. Win-Tex operates six land drilling rigs with depth rates up to 8,000 feet, as well as trucks, trailers and related equipment.

The deal is supposed to be finalized by Dec. 1, Jones said.

Win-Tex has operated in Abilene since Jan, 1, 1987, she said. The couple most likely plans to stay in the oil business, possibly moving to the Houston area.

"We haven't really decided what we might do," Jones said.

One condition of the sale was agreement to a non-compete clause for the area, she said.

Jones said Key Energy plans to "stay very steady" with the type of service and level of quality Win-Tex has traditionally fostered.

The Joneses will be on-hand during the transition period that will inevitably follow the final sale, Huseman said.

Key Energy will not make many changes -if any -to Win-Tex, Huseman said.

"You really don't want to alter the formula of a successful business, and that's the way we feel about Win-Tex," he said. "We plan to make as few changes as possible and hope to build upon the company's current success."

Changes in the oil climate has allowed the company to expand, resulting in about 40 acquisitions in the past year, Huseman said.

Those acquisitions have made the company the largest well service and oilfield trucking company in the United States in terms of sales, he said. And once the Win-Tex sale is complete, the company will run more than 20 shallow drilling rigs.

"We are very please with the pending acquisition of Win-Tex and look forward to serving the Abilene area," he said.

Key Energy Group, Inc., operates in Texas, Oklahoma, Michigan, the Appalachian Basin and Argentina.