Northern Border Partners LP is changing its name to Oneok Partners LP and will begin trading under the new symbol “OKS” on the New York Stock Exchange on Monday. The company also announced governance changes and a rebranding campaign.

The moves follow a transaction in February in which Oneok sold its gas pipelines, gathering, processing, storage and gas liquids assets to Northern Border Partners for $3 billion plus a much greater stake in the partnership. Oneok now owns the general partner and 45.7% of the partnership (see Daily GPI, Feb. 16).

“The new name launches a new era for the partnership and reflects its broader scope of operations, which now include assets from Oneok,” said Oneok Partners Chairman David Kyle. “The Oneok Partners name also acknowledges the new ownership and management structure of the partnership, the aligned interests of the partnership and Oneok and their combined commitment to deliver growth to unit holders and shareholders of both entities.”

As part of the name change, Oneok Partners plans a rebranding campaign that will include employee, customer and investor communications, a new corporate identity and the launch of a redesigned website, https://www.Oneokpartners.com, which will feature investor and customer information for Oneok Partners, L.P. and Oneok Inc. on the same site. The new website will be launched on Monday.

The governance changes include a replacement of the policy and audit committees with the board of directors of Oneok Partners GP, the sole general partner of Oneok Partners. The board will consist of six members, three of whom are independent. The three independent members, Gerald B. Smith, CEO of Graham and Company Investment Advisors, Endres Processing President Gary N. Petersen, and Gil J. Van Lunsen, retired managing partner of KPMG LLP, also will serve as the audit committee. The other Oneok Partners directors include David Kyle, COO John W. Gibson and CFO James C. Kneale.

Oneok Partners will be based in Tulsa. Among other assets, the partnership owns part of Northern Border Pipeline, Midwestern Gas Transmission, Viking Gas Transmission, Bear Paw Energy, Crestone Energy and Black Mesa Pipeline, a coal slurry system in Arizona and Nevada.

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