Jan 30, 2013 Kinder Morgan Energy Partners and Copano Energy announced a definitive agreement whereby KMP will acquire all of Copano’s outstanding units for a total purchase price of approximately $5 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2013. Copano, a midstream natural gas company with operations primarily in Texas, Oklahoma and Wyoming, provides comprehensive services to natural gas producers, including natural gas gathering, processing, treating and natural gas liquids fractionation. Copano owns an interest in or operates about 6 ,9 00 miles of pipelines with 2 .7 Bcfd of natural gas throughput capacity and 9 processing plants with more than 1 Bcfd of processing capacity and 3 1 5 MMcfd of treating capacity. « We anticipate retaining the vast majority of Copano’s approximately 415 employees, » Kinder said. « This transaction is about producing future cash flow and expanding our midstreamservices footprint. » Copano is headquartered in Houston, Texas, and has a sizable office in Tulsa, Okla., which KMP intends to maintain. Upon closing, KMP will own 100 percent of Eagle Ford Gathering (currently a joint venture with Copano), which provides gathering, transportation and processing services to natural gas producers in the Eagle Ford shale. Eagle Ford Gathering comprises approximately 4 00 mi of pipelines (including its capacity rights in certain KMP pipelines) with capacity to gather and process over 7 00,000 MMBtu/day .
JAN