April 5 (Reuters) - Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy said on Friday the closing date of their proposed $7.4 billion merger has been pushed back to the second half of the year after receiving a second request for information from the Federal Trade Commission.

Chesapeake had agreed to buy smaller rival Southwestern Energy earlier this year, a deal that will make it the largest independent U.S. natural gas producer. The deal was earlier expected to close by the second quarter of 2024.

U.S. lawmakers have sought increased scrutiny by the FTC over multi-billion dollar deals. Nearly 50 Democrats in the U.S. Congress in March urged the regulator to probe oil and gas company deals and expand current investigations to protect consumers and industry competition.

Exxon Mobil and Pioneer Natural Resources received similar requests from the FTC related to their $60 billion merger, along with Chevron for its buyout of Hess Corp.

Chesapeake and Southwestern said they would cooperate with the FTC in its review. (Reporting by Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)