** Shares of Vital Energy VTLE.N rise 12.9% to $17.83 premarket
** U.S. Shale producer Crescent Energy CRGY.N is in advanced talks to acquire smaller peer VTLE, Reuters reported on Friday citing people familiar with the matter
** Terms of the combination could not be learned, but a transaction could be announced as soon as this week, said the sources, who cautioned a deal could still fall apart at the last minute
** As of last close, VTLE shares down ~49% YTD
(Reporting by Sumit Saha in Bengaluru)
((Sumit.Saha@thomsonreuters.com))