Williams to buy Momentum Midstream in $5.5bn deal

US pipeline operator Williams has agreed to acquire Momentum Midstream from private equity firm EnCap Flatrock Midstream in a transaction valued at up to $5.5bn. The announcement was included in Williams’ second-quarter earnings release on August 3.

Williams said it would acquire 100% of Momentum for $3.5bn in cash and debt consideration, as well as roughly $2bn of Williams equity. The deal is focused on the Haynesville shale gas play, where Williams already has a substantial presence.

According to the announcement, Momentum’s Haynesville assets will add more than 4,000 miles (6,437 km) of pipelines and over 1mn dedicated acres (4,047 square km) within four major gathering areas with a combined capacity of 6bn cubic feet (170mn cubic metres) per day. Also included are multiple processing and treating facilities and three take-or-pay pipelines capable of transporting 4.05 bcf (115 mcm) per day, which serve the Haynesville and key demand markets, the announcement said.

The acquisition has an implied valuation of around 8.5x projected 2027 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), Williams said.

Bloomberg had reported in June that Williams was in advanced talks to acquire Momentum, so the deal does not come as a surprise. It follows a period of growth for Momentum, which has been pursuing its own acquisitions and expansions over the past few years in a bid to serve growing gas demand on the US Gulf Coast.

Williams also said it was announcing two immediate expansion projects in order to capture the next wave of Haynesville supply and connectivity to growing LNG and power demand. The first is the $1.5bn Delta Access expansion along the Transco corridor. This project will have an initial capacity of 2.25 bcf (63.7 mcm) per day, with future expansion opportunities, and is expected to enter service in the first quarter of 2029.

The second project is the Shelby Trough Connector expansion of Williams’ LEG system into the growing Shelby Trough area of the Haynesville play. Williams said that project would have an initial capacity of 750mn cubic feet (21.2 mcm) per day, with expansion potential up to 1.5 bcf (42.5 mcm) per day. The project includes a new lateral and additional compression facilities and is expected to be online in the second quarter of 2028.

Williams said that both the Momentum acquisition and the expansion projects deepen its exposure to long-term gas demand growth. It noted that this includes LNG demand on the US Gulf Coast, which it said was projected to increase by around 20 bcf (566.4 mcm) per day over the next 10 years.

Williams’ president and CEO, Chad Zamarin, described Momentum as a “highly strategic platform that strengthens our position in the country’s most important LNG demand corridor”. And analytics firm RBN Energy noted in a blog post this week that Williams would become the largest gas gatherer in the Haynesville following the acquisition.