FTC Acts to Remedy Interlocking Director and Information Exchange Concerns in Oil & Gas Transaction

Back to All Thought Leadership

On August 16, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission took action to resolve its antitrust concerns associated with a proposed transaction between EQT Corporation (EQT) and private equity firm QEP Partners, LP (Quantum) pursuant to which EQT agreed to acquire certain of Quantum’s upstream and midstream natural gas interests located in the Appalachian Basin in exchange for approximately $2.6 billion in cash and up to 55 million shares of EQT common stock, along with the right to an EQT board seat. According to Nathan Soderstrom, Acting Deputy Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, the transaction as proposed “would have resulted in an illegal interlocking directorate, facilitated the exchange of confidential and competitively sensitive information, and otherwise stifled competition in the Appalachian Basin.”