Tulsa’s Vintage Petroleum to Buy 2 Arco Oil Fields

Vintage Petroleum Inc., an independent oil producer based in Tulsa, Okla., has agreed in principle to acquire two Ventura County oil and gas fields from a unit of Atlantic Richfield Co. The deal is Vintage’s second purchase of oil property in the county this year.

The properties involved in the current sale are known as the Ojai Silver Thread and Timber Canyon fields. They are part of a 17-site package being purchased from Arco Oil & Gas Co. for $90 million in cash. The other 15 fields are in Kern County.

William C. Barnes, Vintage’s senior vice president and chief financial officer, declined to give production figures on the Ventura County fields, but said total net production of all 17 fields averages 4,700 barrels of oil and 8.7 million cubic feet of natural gas daily.

Last April, Vintage acquired three Ventura County fields from a unit of Shell Oil Co.

Barnes said his company will probably be hiring field personnel to work at its expanded operations in the county.