Great Plains Energy To Buy Westar Energy In $12.2 Bln Cash, Stock Deal

(RTTNews) - Great Plains Energy Inc. (GXP), the parent company of KCP&L, announced Tuesday a definitive agreement to acquire Westar Energy, Inc. (WR) in a combined cash and stock deal with an enterprise value of approximately $12.2 billion. This includes total equity value of approximately $8.6 billion in total stock and cash consideration and the assumption of approximately $3.6 billion debt.

Under the transaction terms, Westar shareholders will receive $60 per share of total consideration for each share of Westar common stock, consisting of $51.00 in cash and $9.00 in Great Plains Energy common stock. This is subject to a 7.5 percent collar based upon the Great Plains Energy common stock price at the time of the closing of the transaction.

Great Plains Energy expects the acquisition will be neutral to earnings-per-share in the first full calendar year of operations and significantly accretive thereafter. The long-term earnings growth target of the combined company is expected to grow to six to eight percent—better than either company on a standalone basis.

Upon closing of the deal, Westar will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Great Plains Energy.

Once the transaction is complete, Great Plains Energy will have more than 1.5 million customers in Kansas and Missouri, nearly 13,000 megawatts of generation capacity, almost 10,000 miles of transmission lines and over 51,000 miles of distribution lines.

Currently, Great Plains Energy and Westar jointly own and operate the Wolf Creek Nuclear Generating Station, as well as the La Cygne and Jeffrey power plants.

The companies anticipate closing in the spring of 2017. In the coming months, the companies will work together to develop a robust integration plan.

Upon completion of the transaction, Terry Bassham, chairman and chief executive officer of Great Plains Energy, will be chairman and chief executive officer of the combined company.