Atlanta-based AGL Resources buys NUI Corp.

<p>Troubled energy holding company NUI Corp. has found a company willing to buy it.</p><p>The Bedminster-based company, which counts Elizabethtown Gas among its subsidiaries, said Thursday that AGL Resources Inc. of Atlanta is spending about $220 million, or $13.70 per share of NUI stock, to acquire it.</p><p>"This agreement marks a giant step forward for NUI," said Craig Matthews, NUI's president and chief executive officer. "As an investment-grade company, AGL Resources brings financial strength to improve our balance sheet and debt structure."</p><p>NUI has been struggling financially, with its credit rating downgraded five times within two years.</p><p>The company pleaded guilty in Union County Superior Court in June to a charge of misconduct by a corporate official after overcharging New Jersey utility companies for natural gas. Along with the $500,000 fine from the case, NUI is also paying off a $28 million settlement with the state Board of Public Utilities.</p><p>__</p><p>On the Net:</p><p>HASH(0x286640c)</p>

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