Enstor to acquire Black Bear Transmission from Basalt Infrastructure Partners

The acquisition is subject to customary completion conditions, including certain regulatory consents, and is expected to complete in Q4 2025.

Black Bear is a long-term contracted pipeline business that delivers natural gas from multiple receipt points to power generation, industrial, and utility customers across the Southeast United States. The company comprises nine regulated transmission systems totalling approximately 1700 miles of pipeline, with a throughput capacity of about 2.6 billion ft³/d. Its pipelines interconnect with 16 major long-haul pipelines and storage facilities across seven states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.

Enstor is one of the largest privately owned natural gas storage companies in the United States and is comprised of six underground natural gas storage facilities and approximately 170 miles of pipeline, with a throughput capacity of more than 5 billion ft3/d. Enstor’s customer base includes a diverse group of investment-grade counterparties, including utilities, marketers, industrials, and pipeline operators. Upon closing, Enstor will have more than 1800 miles of transmission pipeline alongside the six underground natural gas storage facilities with over 110 billion ft³ of certificated working gas capacity.

“We are extremely excited to acquire Black Bear, a highly complementary addition to Enstor’s platform that enhances operational efficiencies and supports our long-term growth strategy,” said Enstor CEO Paul Bieniawski. “The Black Bear system is contracted with investment-grade counterparties, which complements Enstor’s existing contract portfolio, and represents a strategic downstream expansion, providing a portfolio of demand-driven, regulated ‘last-mile’ pipelines serving utilities, power generators, and other key end-use customers across the Southeast US.”

David Greenblatt, Managing Partner at Basalt, added, “This is a great outcome. Black Bear Transmission has achieved exceptional organic and inorganic growth since our acquisition in 2019. The company is recognised as a leading supplier of natural gas across the Southeast. We are excited to see the Company continue its strong growth trajectory as part of Enstor.”

TD Securities is serving as exclusive financial advisor, and Kirkland & Ellis LLP is serving as legal counsel to Enstor. Citigroup is acting as exclusive financial advisor, and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP is legal advisor to Basalt.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/20082025/enstor-to-acquire-black-bear-transmission-from-basalt-infrastructure-partners/