BREAKING: Western Refining acquired by Tesoro Corp. for $6.4 billion

Tesoro Corporation announced in a news release on its website that it is acquiring Western Refining Inc. for more than $6 billion.

Western Refining is owned by billionaire El Pasoan Paul Foster. The company is based in Texas with operations in El Paso.

According to the news release, Tesoro will acquire Western at an implied current price of $37.30 per Western share in a stock transaction , representing an equity value of $4.1 billion based on Tesoro’s closing stock price of $85.74 on November 16, 2016. This represents an enterprise value of $6.4 billion, according to Tesoro.

This transaction has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies, according to the statement by Tesoro.

“This strategic combination provides our shareholders with the opportunity to participate in the tremendous future growth prospects and synergies of the combined company,” Paul Foster, Executive Chairman of Western Refining, was quoted in the news release. “Joining forces with Tesoro, a company that shares our integrated business model strategy, will enable us to further leverage our capabilities in refining, marketing and logistics operations and allow our talented team to work on a growing number of exciting opportunities. We have tremendous respect for the Tesoro team and are excited to be a part of a larger and more diverse organization to support our continued growth.”