Texas oil billionaire Wildcat Autry Stephens dies at 86 By Reuters

By Arathy Somasekhar

HOUSTON (Reuters) – Autry Stephens, the billionaire founder and chairman of Endeavor Energy Resources, has died at the age of 86, the company said on Friday after a long battle with cancer.

Known for a relentless work ethic and frugal nature, he continued to work while under medical care and relied on friends to fly him to cancer treatments in Houston.

His work ethic was shaped by the tough years of the 1980s and 1990s when he struggled to get Endeavor off the ground, sources said. Wildcatter launched Endeavor in 1979 and built it into one of the largest oil and gas firms in the US, buying hard-to-drill wells that the oil majors had rejected.

Stephens agreed in February to sell his Midland, Texas-based company for $26 billion to local rival Diamondback (NASDAQ: ) Energy. He has turned down many offers for the business over the years. The deal is expected to close later this year.

Stephens’ daughter, Lyndal Greth, is becoming chairman of Endeavor’s board, the company announced Friday. Greth was previously vice president.

Born in 1938, Stephens grew up on a farm in DeLeon, Texas, where his family grew peanuts and fruit. He studied engineering and went to work for Humble Oil & Refining, a predecessor of his ExxonMobil (NYSE: ), according to a profile on the University of Texas School of Engineering website.

Stephens drilled its first well in 1979 in Midland County, Texas. He would pick up leasehold properties for acreage that the oil majors found too expensive to drill and cut production costs by managing most of the operations. He created and operated his own fracking, construction and trucking companies.

Stephens was well known in Midland, Texas, the heart of the US shale business, and for regularly bringing his dog to the office. He named one of his companies Big Dog Drilling.