Encana to buy Athlon Energy for $5.93 billion

(Reuters) - Encana Corp , Canada's largest natural gas producer, said it would buy Athlon Energy Inc for $5.93 billion (4.63 billion pounds) in cash, excluding debt. Encana, which is shifting its focus to high-value oil and natural gas liquids, will also assume Athlon's $1.15 billion of senior notes. The deal includes about 140,000 net acres owned by Athlon in the oil-rich Midland Basin. (Reporting by Ashutosh Pandey in Bangalore; Editing by Simon Jennings)