National Fuel to acquire Ohio natural gas utility business of CenterPoint Energy for $2.62bn.

National Fuel, an energy company, agreed to acquire Ohio natural gas utility business of CenterPoint Energy, a natural gas service provider, for $2.62bn. This acquisition will add significant regulated scale for National Fuel, doubling the size of the Company’s gas utility rate base, while expanding its operations into the neighboring state of Ohio, a jurisdiction that is both highly supportive of natural gas and maintains a constructive regulatory framework. This significant increase in regulated cash flows, alongside National Fuel’s unique ability to fund future growth capital with free cash flow from its integrated upstream and gathering operations, will further support the Company’s investment grade balance sheet.