KANSAS CITY, Mo., Sept. 27, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Aquila, Inc. (NYSE:ILA) today announced that Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), an independent proxy advisory firm, supports the merger agreement providing for the acquisition of Aquila by Great Plains Energy Incorporated (NYSE:GXP) and recommends that Aquila shareholders vote "FOR" the merger.
Under the merger agreement, Aquila shareholders will receive cash and stock consideration of $1.80 and 0.0856 of a share of Great Plains Energy common stock in exchange for each share of Aquila common stock they hold. Upon completion of the transaction, Aquila will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Great Plains Energy.
"Receiving this endorsement from ISS is another major milestone in our efforts to close the transaction with Great Plains Energy," said Rick Green, Chairman, President and CEO of Aquila. "We continue to believe that the merger maximizes shareholder value and provides the best opportunity for our shareholders to hold stock in a growing, investment-grade company that pays a dividend. We urge all Aquila shareholders to vote today in favor of the merger."
As previously announced, Aquila will hold a special meeting of its stockholders to vote on the proposed merger at 10 a.m. (Central Time) on Oct. 9, 2007, at Adams Pointe Conference Center, 1400 NE Coronado Drive, Blue Springs, Mo.
In Feb. 2007, the company announced the merger of its Missouri electric operations with Great Plains Energy, and the sale of its Colorado electric operations and its natural gas operation in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska to Black Hills Corp. At the beginning of 2007, Aquila's assets totaled $3.4 billion. Sales for 2006 were $1.4 billion and net income was $23.9 million. Subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including shareholder and regulatory approvals, Aquila expects the merger to close in the first quarter of 2008.
Aquila is a Kansas City, Mo.-based electric and natural gas distribution utility that serves over 900,000 customers in five Midwestern states (Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska). The company also owns and operates generation assets. More information is available at Aquila.com.
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Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains a forward-looking statement within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements give Aquila's current expectations or forecasts of future events. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, and certain important factors can cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. The forward-looking statement contained in this press release includes that Aquila expects to close the merger in the first quarter of 2008. Some important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated include: the occurrence of any event, change or circumstance that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement; the inability of Aquila or Great Plains Energy to obtain stockholder approval or any regulatory approvals required to complete the merger; the inability of Black Hills Corp. to complete the acquisition of certain Aquila assets prior to completion of the merger; and, the failure of the parties to satisfy the other conditions to closing.