OGE Energy Corp. is delaying the initial public offering (IPO) of 7.5 million common units by OGE Enogex Partners LP, a limited partnership formed to develop its natural gas midstream assets and operations, due to market volatility, the company said last week.

Oklahoma City-based OGE said it would watch the market to determine the new timing of the IPO. The offering had been expected to price this week and begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “OGP.” Under the offering, OGE Enogex Partners LP would own a 25% interest in and control OGE Energy natural gas subsidiary Enogex Inc. while OGE Energy would retain a 75% interest in Enogex.

Also last week, Petrohawk Energy Corp. said it had delayed its proposed IPO of units in a master limited partnership that would have held a substantial portion of the company’s long-lived Permian Basin properties.

Several other IPOs that had been scheduled to debut this month have been postponed because of deteriorating market conditions. Among the victims was a master limited partnership planned by Dallas-based exploration and production company EXCO Resources Inc., which withdrew its proposed IPO earlier this month (See NGI, Jan. 14).

Others are forging ahead. Earlier this month Williams Pipeline Partners LP successfully launched an IPO (see NGI, Jan. 21). And in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing last week Anadarko Petroleum Corp. subsidiary Western Gas Partners LP disclosed the expected price range of its proposed IPO of 18.8 million common units. The company said it expects the units to price at $20-22 each. Western was founded in August 2007 to own and operate some of the midstream assets of Anadarko. After the IPO, Anadarko would own a 2% general partner interest in Western, all of its incentive distribution rights and a 57.3% limited partner interest. Western said it expects to raise about $393.8 million from the IPO.

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