Koch subsidiary buys more shares in Colonial Pipeline

WICHITA, Kan. - A Koch Industries subsidiary has agreed to pay about $295 million for an additional 17.97 percent of the shares of Atlanta-based Colonial Pipeline Co.<br> <br> Koch Business Holdings agreed to the deal Friday with Colonial Pipeline, the world&#39;s largest volume transporter of refined petroleum products.<br> <br> The acquisition of the shares, being sold by BP America, will make Koch the largest of seven shareholders in Colonial with 25.27 percent.<br> <br> The deal, subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close at the end of a standard 30-day waiting period.<br> <br> Koch had previously owned 7.3 percent of Colonial&#39;s shares. Colonial&#39;s bylaws provide that when any one shareholder wants to sell shares, the other shareholders have right of first refusal. Koch was the only shareholder to exercise that option.<br> <br> &#34;We are very happy that Koch sees our company as a good investment and wants a bigger share,&#34; said Steve Baker, a spokesman for Colonial.<br> <br> Colonial Pipeline delivers a daily average of 95 million gallons of gasoline, diesel fuel, home heating oil and aviation and military fuels through its 5,519 mile pipeline stretching from the Houston area to the New York harbor.<br> <br> It serves primarily the southern and eastern United States but also feeds pipelines and barges that serve the Midwest and the far northeast.<br>