[Editor’s note: This story was updated at 10:26 a.m. CST March 19.]
Williams (NYSE: WMB) unveiled plans on March 18 to optimize its midstream operations in the western Marcellus and Utica basins through a $3.8 billion joint venture (JV) with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB).
The JV will include Williams’ 100% owned Ohio Valley Midstream system (OVM) and 100% of Utica East Ohio Midstream system (UEO). The Tulsa, Okla.-based company expects synergies through common ownership by combining UEO and OVM ultimately benefiting shale producers in the Northeast.
“Acquiring the remaining interest in UEO and forming a partnership with CPPIB continues to advance our already strong position in the Northeast,” Alan Armstrong, president and CEO of Williams, said in a statement. “These transactions create a platform for continued optimization and growth, provide deleveraging, reduce capital spending on processing and fractionation capacity for OVM, and unlock further synergies through combined operatorship of the systems.”
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