 Kinder Morgan will delist from the US stock market after the deal |
US oil and gas pipeline firm Kinder Morgan is set to go private in a $22bn (�11.6bn) takeover deal. An investment group, which includes chief Richard Kinder, has agreed a cash offer of $15bn, or $107.50 a share, and will also assume $7bn of debt.
The company's board has unanimously backed the buyout, which is expected to be completed in early 2007.
Mr Kinder, who will remain at the helm of the company, is expected to reinvest his 24 million shares in the firm.
Other members of the buyout group include insurer AIG, Goldman Sachs and private equity firms The Carlyle Group and Riverstone Holdings.
"We are proud to partner with this prominent group of private equity firms, all of which have proven records of success," the company said in a statement.
"They share our goals and will be strong partners moving forward."
The $107.50-a-share deal represents a 5.7% premium over Kinder's closing price on Friday, and a 27% premium over its price on 26 May when the offer was first tabled.
Texas-based Kinder Morgan operates 43,000 miles of pipelines - carrying mainly gas, crude oil, petroleum products and carbon dioxide - and employs around 8,300 people.
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