Dominion seeks new buyer for Questar Pipelines after Berkshire Hathaway sale falls through

Dominion will find an alternative buyer for its Questar Pipelines after a planned sale to Berkshire Hathaway was scrapped due to regulatory concerns, the companies said on July 12.

Dominion Energy had previously planned to complete the sale of its US natural gas midstream infrastructure assets to Berkshire Hathaway by early 2021, including its Questar Pipelines holdings. Around 80% of the sale went through in November 2020, which transferred a 25% ownership stake in Cove Point LNG as well as Appalachia transportation and storage assets. The July 12 announcement will have no effect on that transaction.

The fate of Questar Pipelines was a question for Dominion Energy and Berkshire Hathaway Energy and the main asset involved is the 2.5 Bcf/d interstate pipeline, Questar Pipeline, that transports gas from Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado. The company's Questar assets include the region's largest underground storage reservoir, the Clay Basin storage facility on the Wyoming-Utah border, and a local distribution system serving customers in Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho. Dominion Energy Questar Pipeline also owns and operates the 261-mile Dominion Energy Overthrust Pipeline in southwestern Wyoming and also holds a 50% ownership stake in the White River Hub in Rio Blanco County, Colorado.

"The decision is a result of ongoing uncertainty associated with achieving clearance from the Federal Trade Commission under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976," the company said in the July 12 statement. Antitrust concern was the original reason given for the delay in Berkshire Hathaway Energy's purchase of Questar Pipelines. The company has extensive midstream holdings, including Kern River Gas Transmission Company, Northern Natural Gas, and BHE GT&S.

In the original transaction agreement, which was signed in July 2020, Berkshire Hathaway agreed to pay $4 billion in cash and assume $5.7 billion in debt. To repay the $1.3 billion transaction deposit made by Berkshire Hathaway Energy for the Questar assets, Dominion Energy will enter into a 364-day term loan. The company plans to repay the loan by the end of 2021 with the proceeds from selling Questar Pipelines.