Ares Management, through funds led by Ares Infrastructure Opportunities, has acquired a 32.4% stake in the Rover Pipeline from funds managed by Blackstone Energy Transition Partners, the companies announced on Wednesday.
Rover is a major natural gas transmission system spanning about 1,127 kilometres across Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio and Michigan. With a capacity of 96.3 mcm (3.4 bcf) per day, the pipeline connects Appalachian Basin production sites to key demand centres in the US, with most of its capacity contracted under long-term agreements.
Ares is expanding its infrastructure platform to support energy delivery to high-growth markets in the US. The firm, which has nearly USD 623 billion of assets under management globally, has increasingly focused on energy systems that underpin economic expansion and industrial transformation.
The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed in the announcement
“Sitting at the intersection of three of the most powerful trends reshaping North American energy markets – the unprecedented growth in U.S. power demand, rising global need for American LNG and the reshoring of domestic manufacturing – we believe that Rover is well positioned to deliver value over the long term,” said Anthony Omokha, managing director in Ares Infrastructure Opportunities
The asset is operated by an affiliate of Energy Transfer, a leading midstream company, and has been in service since 2018 following its development with backing from Blackstone, which acquired its stake in Rover in 2017. Blackstone said the divestment reflects both the maturity of the asset and the continued importance of natural gas infrastructure in evolving energy systems.