Williams CEO: Evaluating All Options In Bid War For Rival Southern Union
10 August 2011 - 1:14AM
Dow Jones News
Williams Cos. (WMB) Chief Executive Alan S. Armstrong said
Tuesday that the pipeline owner continues to "evaluate all options"
in its bid to merge with rival Southern Union Co. (SUG).
Southern Union last month agreed to a $5.7 billion
cash-and-stock buyout offer from Energy Transfer Equity LP (ETE),
trumping Williams' most recent bid of $5.6 billion. The bidding
war, which would create the largest natural gas pipeline company in
the U.S., added about $1.5 billion to Energy Transfer's opening
$4.2-billion offer in mid-June.
Armstrong declined to say Tuesday whether Williams was
considering a new offer or if it had set any internal deadlines to
decide whether to make one, but he did say, "We'll certainly be a
disciplined buyer."
Armstrong, speaking to investors on a conference call to discuss
the Tulsa, Okla., company's second- quarter earnings, declined
further comment on Southern Union.
Williams Cos.'s second-quarter profit, disclosed last week, rose
23% to $227 million, or 38 cents a share, from $185 million, or 31
cent a share, a year earlier. Excluding items such as charges from
the restructuring of its Williams Partners LP (WPZ) segment,
earnings from continuing operations rose to 39 cents a share from
28 cents. Williams did not provide revenue figures.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected 39 cents a
share.
Williams and Energy Transfer are banking that combining their
position in prolific natural gas production areas, with Southern's
access to Florida and Midwestern markets, will make them better
able to transport natural gas through what is becoming an
increasingly congested system. The glut has been brought about by
new drilling technology, which in recent years has unlocked an
unprecedented natural gas bounty from deeply buried rock
formations, including shales.
Shares of Williams rose 5.74% to $25.42 in early trading.
-By Ryan Dezember, Dow Jones Newswires, 713-560-6670,
ryan.dezember@dowjones.com
-Joan E. Solsman and Ben Lefebvre contributed to this
article.
Southern Union (NYSE:SUG)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Southern Union (NYSE:SUG)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024