Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC) announced on Tuesday the sale of two gas fields off the coast of Louisiana to Exco Resources Inc. (NYSE: XCO) for $1.6 billion.

The Houston-based independent oil and gas producer sold the fields stating that it would used the proceeds to pay off debt and focus on its recent acquisitions of Kerr-McGee Corporation and Western Gas Resources, Inc.

"This divestiture is an important step in refocusing the portfolio following our acquisitions of Kerr-McGee and Western Gas Resources in August, and we are pleased with the value,' Anadarko Chairman, President and CEO Jim Hackett said. "These fields have been great assets for the company. However, the fields have reached the stage in their development cycle where it makes sense for us to monetize them, reduce leverage and focus on other attractive opportunities in our portfolio.'

The sale comes after the firm bought out a pair of peer companies for $23 billion in August in separate transactions. Over the past few months, the company had sold some of its non core-assets to reduce the debt. Since the end of September the company's total debt stands at roughly $26 billion or 67 percent of its total equity.

As of November 1, the fields being sold produced 192 million cubic feet of equivalent per day from around 350 wells on 66,000 net acres.

Anadarko's shares increased 60 cents, or 1.42 percent, to $42.74 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Exco shares rose $1.07, or 6.35 percent, to $17.91 also on the NYSE.

Sale