M&A

Dominion Resources Inc. is buying Carolina Gas Transmission (CGT) from SCANA Corp. for $492.9 million. CGT owns and operates nearly 1,500 miles of federally regulated interstate natural gas pipeline in South Carolina and southeastern Georgia.

Spain’s Repsol SA, which has been prowling for assets for the past three years to boost its flagging oil and gas reserves, on Tuesday agreed to buy Calgary’s Talisman Energy Inc., boosting output by 76% and establishing the operator as one of the top 15 producers in the world.

Houston-based EOG Resources Inc. on Monday announced the divestiture of all its assets in Manitoba and certain assets in Alberta in two separate confidential transactions that closed on Nov. 28 and Dec. 1. The move was mostly to shed natural gas assets.

UIL Holdings Corp. has terminated its $1.86 billion agreement to purchase Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW), the nation’s largest municipally-owned gas utility, after the city council’s decision in October to rule out what it deemed a risky sale.

Exploration and development (E&D) spending by independents worldwide dropped by 14% in 2013 from 2012 as depressed natural gas prices in North America took a toll on cash flows and spending ability, an annual survey by EY found.

The global economy may be increasingly stable, with resilient equity markets, but the global oil and gas landscape for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) is only cautiously optimistic, according to EY’s 11th biannual Oil and Gas Capital Confidence Barometer.

Quanta Services Inc. announced Monday that it had acquired Banister Pipelines Corp., a move that will expand the Houston-based company’s pipeline construction and maintenance business in Canada.

Texas remains the most attractive place in the world for oil and natural gas investment, with Alberta holding the No. 2 position, the Fraser Institute reported Thursday.

Baker Hughes Inc. affirmed it is in preliminary discussions with Halliburton Co. regarding a potential merger, a blockbuster prospect for North America’s onshore and offshore operators — and for Houston as well, where the oilfield giants are headquartered.