Latham Advises ETE in $1 Billion Asset Sale

© 2012 The Texas Lawbook.

By Mark Curriden, JD
Senior Writer for The Texas Lawbook

Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners announced Monday that it is selling its Missouri Gas Energy and New England Gas companies to Laclede Group, which is based in St. Louis, for $1 billion.

ETP acquired the utility assets earlier this year when it purchased Southern Union for $5.4 billion. ETP also closed its $5.3 billion acquisition of Sunoco in October. Since then, the company has been trying to sell what it describes as “non-core assets.”

Latham & Watkins M&A partners Bill Finnegan and Sean Wheeler of Houston are leading the transaction for ETP General Counsel Thomas Mason. Finnegan and Wheeler also advised ETP in the Southern Union and Sunoco deals.

Lawyers in Akin Gump’s New York office are representing Laclede.

Three Texas-based Latham associates – Jesse Myers, Adrian Milton and Trevor Lavelle – played key roles in the transaction. Corporate finance partner Craig Kornreich, corporate tax partner Tim Fenn and environmental law partner Joel Mack also were involved in the deal.

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