How shall the future curator of the Transaction Line museum choose to present the collection devoted to 2015?
Most likely with a focus on the second half. Really, after getting past the Shell-BG Group display, docents will be hard-pressed to keep the visiting school kids’ attention with tales of the first six months.
Then again, there should at least be a display case depicting The Williams Cos. Inc.’s $13.8 billion takeover of Williams Partners LP, a stock-for-unit deal that pays homage to Kinder Morgan Inc.’s roll-up of 2014 by streamlining the corporate structure. It expands the big C corp’s footprint in a host of major shale plays and sets the stage for the second half of 2015.
“We upgraded [Williams Partners] in January as converging LP/GP growth rates and persistent coverage issues set company as prime restructuring candidate,” was the quick reaction from Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. in its daily note, mentioning that, as a single entity, Williams has reduced its total payout and can be expected to show 10% to 15% growth through 2020.“We expected company to increase leverage profile but deal comprised of all equity with 14.5% [Williams Partners] premium over 10-day average,” it added.
Williams Partners had already bolstered its portfolio with its $575 million purchase of EV Energy Partners LP’s 21% in Utica East Ohio Midstream. That deal positioned the companies for the expected sec- ond-half recovery in the acquisitions and divestitures arena.
In the month following the deal, EV Energy’s stock price shot up 32%—sweet by 2014’s standards but spectacular by 2015’s. J.P. Morgan applauded the deal for providing the proceeds for EV Energy to apply to an acquisition of E&P assets after the transaction is closed in July, even allowing for the possibility of a touch of exuberance.
That assured approach might prompt some to stop by the museum gift shop and invest in an umbrella—the kind with dollar signs flowing through a network of pipelines. It’s best to be prepared. You never know when we’ll be hit with a storm of transactions.
Recommended Reading
CERAWeek: Tecpetrol CEO Touts Argentina Conventional, Unconventional Potential
2024-03-28 - Tecpetrol CEO Ricardo Markous touted Argentina’s conventional and unconventional potential saying the country’s oil production would nearly double by 2030 while LNG exports would likely evolve over three phases.
Argentina's Vaca Muerta Shale Formation Drives Record Oil Production in February
2024-03-22 - Argentina's Neuquen province hit a record for daily oil production in February.
Permian Gas Finds Another Way to Asia
2024-04-30 - A crop of Mexican LNG facilities in development will connect U.S. producers to high-demand markets while avoiding the Panama Canal.
Pitts: US, Qatar Face off in LNG ‘Olympics’
2024-05-03 - In the LNG exporting space, the U.S. is squaring off with its fiercest competitor, Qatar, with both countries expected to outpace Australia
Texas LNG Export Plant Signs Additional Offtake Deal With EQT
2024-04-23 - Glenfarne Group LLC's proposed Texas LNG export plant in Brownsville has signed an additional tolling agreement with EQT Corp. to provide natural gas liquefaction services of an additional 1.5 mtpa over 20 years.