EQT buys Range Resources in $50 billion stock-for-stock gas merger
EQT Corp has agreed to acquire Range Resources in an all-share transaction worth over $50 billion including debt, forming what the two firms describe as America's largest vertically integrated natural gas producer.
Per the agreement, each Range share will convert into 0.987 EQT shares, putting the implied value at $54.91 per share, a 20.6% premium to Friday’s close. Based on Reuters figures, this prices Range’s equity near $12.8 billion. Once the merger closes, existing EQT holders will own about 73% of the enlarged company, while Range investors retain the remaining 27%.
The combined business will span nearly 3 million net acres across the Appalachian region, carrying drilling inventory sufficient for over three decades of operations and more than 3,700 miles of pipeline infrastructure, with output topping 9 billion cubic feet equivalent daily. EQT stated the merger would drive its unlevered free cash flow breakeven under $2 per million British thermal units, unlocking $325 million in yearly savings within two years and potentially exceeding $600 million longer term. Management expects roughly $20 billion in combined free cash flow across the next five years based on current futures pricing.
This EQT-Range Resources deal arrives as the US Energy Information Administration projects national gas production climbing from 107.6 billion cubic feet daily in 2025 to 111.7 Bcf/d this year and 115.9 Bcf/d by 2027, while LNG shipments abroad are set to hit an all-time high of 17.4 Bcf/d in 2026. Separately, Global Energy Monitor reported that half of the 378 gigawatts of US gas-fired generation capacity currently being built is connected to data center demand, and an EY analysis found that reserves among 30 leading US producers expanded 14% even as their collective dealmaking expenditure dropped 70%.
Ahead of the opening bell, EQT stock slipped 4.2% to $53.27, whereas Range shares surged 14.2% to $52.00. Completion is anticipated during the first quarter of 2027, contingent on approval from shareholders and regulators.
For the energy sector, the emergence of a bigger, cheaper-to-run Appalachian gas supplier could reshape US supply and pricing trends, carrying implications for LNG export volumes and gas-fired electricity demand driven by data center expansion.
Source: OilPrice.com