EQT announces joint venture with Blackstone for midstream assets
Published by Alfred Hamer,
Editorial Assistant
World Pipelines,
EQT Corporation has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with funds managed by Blackstone Credit & Insurance (BXCI), to form a new midstream joint venture consisting of EQT's ownership interest in high quality contracted infrastructure assets: (i) Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC – Series A, (ii) FERC regulated transmission and storage assets, and (iii) the Hammerhead Pipeline.
Under the terms of the agreement BXCI will provide EQT US$3.5 billion of cash consideration in exchange for a non-controlling common equity interest in the JV. The investment implies a total JV valuation of approximately US$8.8 billion, or 12x EBITDA. The JV provides EQT with a large-scale equity capital solution at an accretive cost of capital. Additionally, EQT will retain the rights to growth projects associated with the assets contributed to the JV, including the planned Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) expansion and the MVP Southgate project.
EQT plans to use proceeds from this transaction to pay down its term loan and revolving credit facility and redeem and tender for senior notes. Pro-forma for this transaction, along with the recent announcement of the divesture of its remaining non-operated assets in northeast Pennsylvania, EQT expects to exit 2024 with approximately US$9 billion of net debt.
EQT President and CEO Toby Z. Rice stated, "This transaction underscores the ultra-high-quality nature of EQT's regulated midstream assets, which service one of the strongest power demand growth regions in the United States underpinned by long-term contracts with the region's leading utilities. Importantly, through this joint venture EQT preserves the benefits of the Equitrans acquisition by retaining the long-term value from synergy capture and growth projects. We look forward to working with Blackstone to optimise the value of these assets and together explore strategic opportunities across its leading portfolio of energy, power and digital infrastructure in the years ahead."
EQT Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Knop stated, "Blackstone is a leader in providing capital solutions to large corporations and we are thrilled to partner with them in this unique transaction, crafting a tailor-made equity financing solution at a price significantly below EQT's equity cost of capital while preserving key tax attributes. When we announced the Equitrans acquisition earlier this year, we made an unwavering commitment to debt reduction. We have now delivered on that promise, with announced divestitures to date totalling US$5.25 billion of projected cash proceeds, above the high-end of our US$3 – 5 billion asset sale target, and several quarters ahead of schedule."
Robert Horn, Global Head of Infrastructure & Asset-Based Credit at BXCI stated, "EQT is one of the leading energy and infrastructure companies in North America, and we are delighted to partner with them on this transaction and future growth. The transaction highlights Blackstone's focus on providing large scale and flexible high-grade capital solutions to the world's leading corporations."
Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/26112024/eqt-announces-joint-venture-with-blackstone-for-midstream-assets/
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