U.S. oil and gas mergers surged last quarter with the most $1 billion-plus combination since 2014, according to data released on Monday, as rising energy and share prices led to larger oilpatch deals. Producer are consolidating in U.S. shale as oil and natural gas prices recover from last year’s pandemic swoon and this month traded at multi-year highs. Smaller producers also are snapping up unwanted properties in a bet on continued demand for oil and gas while some big oil companies shift their acquisition emphasis to renewables. Total value of the 40 reported deals last quarter was $33 billion, estimated energy data provider Enverus Inc, up from $44.5 billion for all of last year. The quarter’s seven $1 billion plus deals were mostly in Texas and Colorado oilfields but a fifth of the total value was spend on natural gas properties in the […]