NEW YORK (AP) — Range Resources will buy rival natural gas producer Memorial Resource Development for about $3.3 billion to expand its range in the East and in the Gulf.
Shareholders of Memorial Resources, based in Houston, will receive 0.375 shares of Range Resources stock for each of their shares. The all-stock deal is valued at about $15.75 per share, marking a 17 percent premium to its closing price Friday.
Range Resources will also assume $1.1 billion in debt.
The purchase better positions the Fort Worth company in the Appalachian and Gulf Coast regions.
Utilizing Memorial’s northern Louisiana assets gives Range a way to take advantage of the growing market for gas exports to Mexico and supply the growing demand from Gulf Coast petrochemical plants and producers of electric power, the company said in a presentation to analysts.
The deal is expected to close in the second half of the year.