OAKVILLE, Ont. – Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. plans to buy the Empire District Electric Co., a Missouri-based utility, inside an all-cash deal worth US$2.4 billion, including debt.
Under the friendly deal, Liberty Utilities, a subsidiary of Oakville, Ont.-based Algonquin, pays US$34 per share for the company, while assuming US$900 million in Empire debt.
The companies said inside a joint news release Tuesday the price represents a 21 percent premium towards the closing cost of Empire stock on Monday.
The Empire District Electric Co., headquartered in Joplin, Mo., could be a regulated electric, gas and water utility serving about 218,000 customers in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.
The transaction, that has the approval from the boards of both companies but is vulnerable to shareholder, state and U.S. federal approvals, is anticipated to seal within the first quarter of 2017.
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Empire will then be described as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Liberty Utilities and stop as being a publicly-held corporation.
“The acquisition of Empire represents a continuation of our disciplined growth strategy, which strengthens and diversifies Algonquin’s existing businesses and strategically expands our regulated utility footprint within the Midwest Usa,” Algonquin CEO Ian Robertson said inside a statement.
Algonquin said hello has obtained US$1.6 billion in bridge financing from CIBC Capital Markets, J.P. Morgan, Scotiabank and Wells Fargo to assist purchase the transaction.OAKVILLE, Ont. – Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (TSX:AQN) promises to buy the Empire District Electric Co., a Missouri-based utility, in a all-cash deal worth US$2.4 billion, including debt.
Under the friendly deal, Liberty Utilities, a subsidiary of Oakville, Ont.-based Algonquin, pays US$34 per share for the company, while assuming US$900 million in Empire debt.
The companies said in the joint news release Tuesday the cost represents a 21 percent premium for that closing cost of Empire stock on Monday.
The Empire District Electric Co., headquartered in Joplin, Mo., could be a regulated electric, gas and water utility serving about 218,000 customers in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.
The transaction, which has the approval from the boards of both companies but is prone to shareholder, state and U.S. federal approvals, is predicted to seal inside the first quarter of 2017.
Empire will end up a wholly-owned subsidiary of Liberty Utilities and prevent being a publicly-held corporation.
“The acquisition of Empire represents a continuation within our disciplined growth strategy, which strengthens and diversifies Algonquin’s existing businesses and strategically expands our regulated utility footprint within the Midwest Usa,” Algonquin CEO Ian Robertson said inside a statement.
Algonquin stated it has obtained US$1.6 billion in bridge financing from CIBC Capital Markets, J.P. Morgan, Scotiabank and Wells Fargo to help purchase the transaction.
