People familiar with the matter say closely held energy producer Aethon Energy Management is considering an IPO that would value the business at more than $10 billion.

The IPO is one of several options under consideration. Among the others would be selling off its assets in Northern Louisiana. Those familiar with the matter say there is no pressure to make any deal, and no decisions have been made.

Aethon declined to comment.

In the Haynesville shale basin, straddling East Texas and northern Louisiana, Aethon is the most active driller, and their location puts them near several LNG export terminals on the Gulf Coast, at a time when Europe is desperate for supplemental gas to offset that which is being restricted by Russia..

The IPO option would provide investors with a cash-producing gas business that wasn’t constrained by pipeline considerations that affect rivals elsewhere in the nation.

Oil and gas investor Albert Huddleston founded Dallas-based Aethon in 1990. Since its inception, he has managed the $1.6 billion in assets it represents for family and institutional investors,

Partnering with Dallas-based Redbird Capital Partners in 2015, the Huddleston family set about scaling the business up to its present state. In 2016, they brought in Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan to increase capital availability, and in 2019, they acquired QEP Resources.

In January Reuters reported that just the Louisiana asset sale could be worth roughly $6 billion.