NEW YORK, Sept 4 (Reuters) - U.S. oil and gas producers'

appetite for dealmaking is closing in on last year's record,

with rising interest in smaller oilfields offsetting slower

activity in the top oil-producing Permian basin, analysts at

consultancy firm Rystad said on Wednesday.

Nearly $100 billion has been spent by U.S. producers on

mergers and acquisitions (M&A) so far this year, and another $46

billion in assets are currently for sale, according to a Rystad

analysis through late August.

A record $155 billion worth of production and exploration

focused deals were signed in 2023, according to Rystad's tally.

Consolidation in the industry reached a fever pitch last

year as top oil producers unveiled mega-deals to boost both

their output and their backlog of drilling locations. For

private owners, it has presented a rare window to exit

investments profitably.

"Private equity-backed oil producers are likely to continue

selling off assets to capitalize on public companies' appetite

for inventory and secure premium valuations as competition among

potential buyers increases," Raina said.

While last year's dealmaking rush focused almost exclusively

on the Permian basin in Texas and New Mexico, intense

competition for acreage in the top U.S. oilfield has sent

opportunistic buyers to look elsewhere.

SM Energy ( SM ), which is extending its footprint in the

Uinta basin in Utah by acquiring XCL Resources for $2 billion,

said good deals have become harder to find in the Permian.

"We would love to add that kind of asset in the Permian, but

getting something of that size anywhere near that price is

really hard right now," SM Energy ( SM ) Chief Financial Officer Wade

Pursell said at a conference on Tuesday.

Deals focused on the Permian were just 46% of the first half

total this year, versus 92% in the second-half last year,

according to Rystad's analysis.

Deals in the Bakken basin of North Dakota grew to 12% in the

first-half this year, from virtually none in the second half

last year. The Marcellus basin in Pennsylvania made up 14% of

the deals in the first half this year, while the Eagle Ford

basin in Southeast Texas represented 13%, according to Rystad

data.