The Williams Cos. Inc., Williams Partners LP and Access Midstream Partners LP announced the closing of the merger between Williams Partners and Access Midstream. As part of the completion of the merger, Access Midstream Partners changed its name to Williams Partners LP and its units began trading under the symbol “WPZ” on Feb. 3.

The acquisition of Access Midstream by Williams and the subsequent merger with Williams Partners enhances Williams’ exposure to key production basins in North America. Williams Partners now features large-scale positions across three key components of the midstream sector, including:

  • Natural gas pipelines: Transco, Northwest and Gulfstream represent the nation’s premier interstate pipeline network. Transco is the nation’s largest and fastest-growing pipeline system;
  • Gathering and processing: Large-scale positions in growing gas supply areas in major shale and unconventional producing areas, including the Marcellus, Utica, Piceance, Four Corners, Wyoming, Eagle Ford, Haynesville, Barnett, Mid-continent and Niobrara. Additionally, the business includes oil and gas gathering services in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico; and
  • NGL and petrochemical services: Unique downstream presence on the Gulf Coast and in western Canada provides differentiated long-term growth.