Sabinal Energy is preparing its assets to sell the company in a deal which could bring in more than $1 billion, according to sources close to the situation. The company has already retained the services of an auction adviser and has launched an auction to sell off as much as $1.5 billion worth of assets.

Among them are 132,000 net acres throughout the Permian Basin. The asset blocks, including areas of the central basin platform, the northeast and eastern shelves, and an area in the Delaware Basin extending into New Mexico, could be sold to one or more buyers.

Estimates are the assets will produce more than $400 million in earnings in the next 12 months, before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, due to a daily production of 13,000 barrels of oil-equivalent. No sale has yet been reached, and sources stressed, plans for Sabinal could change.

Kayne Private Energy Income Fund had provided a $300 million equity commitment to Woodlands, Texas based Sabinal in 2016. Sabinal is run by Bret Jameson, who started working on Central Basin Platform assets for Exxon.

The immensely lucrative and fragmented Permian Basin has been a focus of consolidation y companies looking to dominate the petroleum industry. In May, private-equity-backed Colgate Energy was acquired by rival Centennial Resource Development Inc., in a deal worth about $2.5 billion.

As oil prices rise, it is expected consolidation will increase as companies look to expand dwindling supplies of top-tier well sites.