Suddenlink to acquire NPG Cable
St. Louis, Mo.-based Cequel Communications, LLC, doing business as Suddenlink Communications, announced on Nov. 29 that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire NPG Cable, Inc., and its subsidiaries from parent company News Press & Gazette Co., for approximately $350 million. The deal is still subject to customary working-capital closing arrangements, but Suddenlink executives said in a press release they expect to complete the sale in the first quarter of 2011 and currently have sufficient existing liquid capital and other assets to back the transaction.
NPG Cable serves approximately 83,000 customers, representing approximately 210,000 revenue generating units or RGUs, with operations in St. Joseph, Mo.; Mammoth Lakes, Calif.; and several, clustered Arizona communities, including Flagstaff and Sedona, Lake Havasu and Kingman.
“We’re excited about the opportunity to acquire NPG and welcome its employees and customers to the Suddenlink family,” Suddenlink’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jerry Kent said. “This acquisition is a solid fit with our existing operations and we have a proven track record of serving similar communities. We have great respect for NPG and its owners, the Bradley family, and look forward to working with them on the transition.”
Suddenlink has cable operations in Bishop, Calif., which are similar in operational nature to NPG’s systems in Mammoth Lakes. Officials with Suddenlink said they are looking forward to the opportunity to interconnect those properties after the deal closes.
NPG Cable executives also seemed very amenable to the deal. “The foundation of our success at NPG Cable for the last 45 years has been our family culture, where employees approach their daily work and make decisions as if they own the company,” NPG Chief Administrative Officer Brian Bradley commented. “We are thrilled that Suddenlink, which has a great reputation, shares a similar culture.”
Locally, NPG Cable’s Mammoth Lakes General Manager Maggie Thompson called the pending acquisition “very exciting.” –Sheet Staff/Press Release
