Emera to buy Maine & Maritimes for $45 per share

NEW YORK

Canada-based energy and services company Emera Inc. said Friday that it will buy Maine & Maritimes Corp.

Emera will pay $45 per share in cash, which is a 41 percent premium to Maine & Maritimes' Thursday closing stock price of $32. It plans to initially fund the transaction from existing credit agreements until long-term financing is set up.

Maine & Maritimes -- the parent company of Maine Public Service Company and MAM Utility Services Group -- had about 1.7 million shares outstanding as of Nov. 12, 2009, according to its most recent quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The offer price and number of outstanding shares imply a transaction value of $76.5 million.

Emera said it has no immediate plans to make staff cuts.

Maine & Maritimes board has approved the acquisition, which is subject to other regulatory approvals including the Maine Public Utilities Commission and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The companies anticipate it will take six to eight months to receive the regulatory approvals.

The deal, which is expected to add to Emera's earnings within the first year, is targeted to close later this year.

Maine & Maritimes is based in Presque Isle, Maine. Its shares jumped $11.06, or 34.6 percent, to $43.06 in afternoon trading. The stock hit a fresh 52-week high of $43.95 earlier in the session.