How to Achieve Financial Efficiency in Mineral Acquisitions with ComboCurve

Not only has MAEVLO‘s workflow efficiency improved and shortened deal timelines. Utilizing ComboCurve has also significantly enhanced the overall strategic agility of MAEVLO’s compact team.

“We’re huge fans of ComboCurve and will continue to be. It’s been a big part of leveraging new technology in a way to reduce our total overhead cost so that we can also stay nimble, sharp, and competitive.

– Matthew Montgomery, Managing Director, MAEVLO Company

Established in 2018 in Aurora, Colorado, MAEVLO Company has rapidly emerged as a key innovator in the oil & gas mineral and royalty sector. With a lean team, they leverage advanced marketing technology and data enrichment techniques to maximize investment value. “We’re friends and family capital, at the heart, we’re not institutional. Some think that can be a disadvantage but it keeps us a nimble and compact team. Using the best technology available allows us to focus on what’s most important to us, stewarding our partner’s resources by efficiently sourcing and closing good deals,” explains Matthew Montgomery.

This agility underpins their operations, with the team’s diverse and complementary expertise —from Director Matthew Montgomery and partner Marshall Porterfield—driving their strategic use of technology.

“We don’t have a lot of personnel, but we’re big on leveraging technology like ComboCurve and Juniper Square, and accounting is fully automated and off-site for the same reasons,” Matthew adds. 

 

A Finance Guy Through and Through 

Coming from a background rich in oil and gas finance and real estate development, Matthew Montgomery stands out with his keen financial acumen. His career began in land management, where he gained hands-on experience that provided the foundation for his future roles. From managing brokerage operations and regulatory compliance at major firms to leading financial strategies, Matthew has consistently championed the integration of sophisticated tools like ComboCurve in all business operations.  

The culmination of these experiences led Matthew to launch MAEVLO in 2018. Reflecting on his entrepreneurial path, Matthew notes, “After two iterations of developing private equity mineral portfolio companies, I ultimately went out on my own. I wanted to do this business in an intelligent and authentic way.” 

  

Before ComboCurve 

MAEVLO previously relied on a mix of legacy solutions and manual data management processes, including PHDwin, ARIES, DI, and Enverus. Time-consuming and prone to errors, these tools were not able to support the rapid pace required for quick deal assessments and bids. “We handle a high volume of deals and need tools that are affordable and fast, as we often have to make offers in just a few hours.” Relying on these outdated systems led to slower decision-making, potentially costing them important deals. 

“We’re not your typical shop that has an engineering department, spending months to study this data and produce a reserve report. We have to turn fast or otherwise we aren’t watering the roots and the whole tree dies.” – Matthew Montgomery, Managing Director, MAEVLO Company 

 

Software Budgeting Challenges – Why Buy? 

Initially, MAEVLO opted for Landgate, as ComboCurve was beyond their budget scope. Their reliance on external engineers and third-party consultants for analyses and evaluations increased both costs and time delays. Traditional, non-cloud-based software did not support real-time collaboration, making it difficult for the team to work efficiently across different locations. This was particularly challenging for a lean operation like MAEVLO, which requires agility and efficiency.   

As MAEVLO grew, securing more funds, capital, and assets under management, they needed something more robust like ComboCurve to keep up with deal flow and handle the scale of their operations.  

  

Boosting Operational Agility with ComboCurve  

Matthew led the transition from using legacy software and various Excel-based workflows, which were not only cumbersome but also limited in scope. “We look at it as what’s going to make us stand out from the competition? With so many mineral and royalty acquisition platforms now, what’s going to differentiate you? And in our view, it’s knowing what we know and knowing what we don’t know. Finding the best technology partners allows us to focus on what we’re good at and what’s most important to us.” 

 

Diagnostics tool that streamlines forecasting by identifying outliers that require adjustments. 

 

The integration of ComboCurve transformed their operations, enabling faster analysis and more dynamic decision-making capabilities, which are crucial for staying competitive in mineral rights acquisitions. 

  

Leveraging ComboCurve for Passive Investment Analysis 

MAEVLO’s approach to mineral rights acquisitions is distinctly passive, with limited control over operational decisions. Matthew explains the unique position they hold:  

“We view our investment vehicles here as passive investments. We have no control over the operations, the next well being drilled, fracking depth or duration. As land men and finance people, we rely on ComboCurve to manage the heavy lifting of empirical data that’s out there, publicly available data. And then we apply the best-case statistical analysis to estimate the likely performance of wells based on the data from surrounding wells.”

Using the Type Curve Module to accurately assess risk in new development.

 

Driving Fast Decisions and Market Responsiveness 

One of the most notable impacts of implementing ComboCurve has been MAEVLO’s ability to rapidly respond to market opportunities. This is definitely an advantage in the high-stakes world of mineral acquisitions. “We kiss a lot of frogs,” Matthew notes, highlighting the high volume of deals they evaluate. “We’re told “no” way more than we’re told “Yes”, and that’s OK, but that’s been a huge leg up for us in using your platform.”  

The ability to rapidly analyze and act on potential deals with confidence has increased MAEVLO’s efficiency. It has also strengthened its reputation as a responsive and reliable business partner in the industry. 

 

The Financial Logic Behind ComboCurve 

“We’re a very lean entrepreneurial shop. We don’t have an engineer on staff because of ComboCurve.” 

Matthew quickly recognized the cost advantages of implementing ComboCurve. With a clear understanding of the significant expenses associated with hiring a full-time petroleum engineer right out of school—”north of six figures plus training”—Matthew saw ComboCurve as a cost-effective alternative. “If ComboCurve costs less than that, then there’s your savings,” he explains.  

This strategic decision allowed MAEVLO to forgo hiring an in-house engineer. They instead relied on ComboCurve to handle complex data analysis and project evaluations, substantially reducing the company’s overhead costs while maintaining high operational standards. 

 

Industry Influence – with Financial Institutions 

Matthew’s commitment to modernizing MAEVLO’s operations extended beyond internal practices to simplify their external partnerships – notably, with banks. A significant example is their relationship with an RBL (Reserve-Based Lending), who later became a ComboCurve customer. 

Initially, there was a pause in the relationship with the RBL due to differences in technological adoption. Matthew reflects on the decision, “We stepped back from our relationship with them [RBL] as we felt it was crucial for our partners to embrace advanced tools and implement ComboCurve into their workflow.” Their firm stance encouraged the RBL to consider and eventually integrate ComboCurve into their operations, which not only solidified MAEVLO’s commitment to innovation but set a new standard for technological adoption among financial partners interacting with the oil and gas sector. 

 

MAEVLO’s adoption of ComboCurve from a financial, non-engineering perspective, demonstrates how integrating advanced technologies can dramatically enhance operational efficiencies, reduce costs, and drive faster, more informed decision-making in oil and gas mineral acquisitions. MAEVLO has not only been able to streamline its operations but has also positioned itself as a leader in a traditionally slow-to-adapt industry. The strategic use of technology enabled MAEVLO to stay competitive, agile, and forward-thinking in the mineral market landscape.   

In our previous MAEVLO blog, we spoke with Matthew’s partner and landman, Marshall Porterfield. He shared insights on using ComboCurve from a non-engineering perspective. Read more here!