Alta Mesa Files for Bankruptcy as Energy Sector Prices Slide (1)

Alta Mesa Resources Inc. became the latest oil driller to file for bankruptcy, seeking Chapter 11 protection two years after it was formed by James Hackett, the former chief executive of Anadarko Petroleum Corp.

The company has about $1.08 billion of debt outstanding, Chief Financial Officer John C. Regan said in papers filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston. Alta Mesa will try to sell its assets under court supervision after failing to interest more than 50 companies in an out-of-court rescue, Regan said.

Not all of Alta Mesa’s subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy, including an entity that holds ...