CALGARY, Alberta, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Canadian energy company Enbridge said it was combining with its counterpart Spectra Energy to create what it said was a North American infrastructure giant.
In an all-stock deal valued at $28 billion, the Canadian company said it teamed up with Spectra, which counts about 21,000 miles of oil and natural gas pipelines in North America. By the estimates of Enbridge, the combination creates the largest corporate entity of its kind in the region.
"The combination of Enbridge and Spectra Energy creates what we believe will be the best, most diversified energy infrastructure company in North America, if not the world," Spectra President and CEO Greg Ebel said in a statement.
Ebel moves over to the chairman of Enbridge following the closing of the transaction.
For Enbridge, the move comes as it works to expand its pipeline networks across Canada and North America. Last month, the company established a joint venture with Marathon Petroleum Corp. to invest a combined $2 billion in the Bakken Pipeline system, a system that links the North Dakota oil fields to regional networks.
Al Monaco, who retains his role as president and CEO at Enbridge, said the merger with Spectra was part of a growing effort to become the North American leader in energy transit networks.
"Over the last two years, we've been focused on identifying opportunities that would extend and diversify our asset base and sources of growth beyond 2019," he said.
His company last week, however, pulled the plug on its planned 616-mile Sandpiper oil pipeline from the Bakken oil reserve in North Dakota, saying crude oil production was too low to support development.
Enbridge, in tandem with Marathon, maintains its interest in the Dakota Access pipeline, a project that's been the target of widespread regional protests.
