Plains All American Completes 100% Stake in EPIC Crude
The pipeline operator now owns the full EPIC Crude Holdings system and serves as operator of record of the Cactus III Pipeline.
Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (PAA) completed a two-step purchase that gave it 100% of EPIC Crude Holdings, LP, the entity that owns and operates the EPIC Crude Oil Pipeline.
The company first closed on a 55% equity interest on October 31, 2025, from subsidiaries of Diamondback Energy, Inc. and Kinetik Holdings Inc. Effective November 1, it acquired the remaining 45% operated interest from a portfolio company of Ares Private Equity funds for about $1.33 billion, inclusive of approximately $500 million of debt.
Plains also agreed to a potential earnout of up to $157 million tied to certain expansions of the pipeline system by 2028. Together, the two closings left PAA owning the full equity interest in EPIC.
The company said the remaining 45% interest “allows us to accelerate and increase synergy capture on the full system, including meaningful 2026 cost savings.” It said it expects solid mid-teens returns with a 2026 EBITDA multiple of about 10x, improving significantly over the next few years.
Plains now indirectly owns 100% of the equity interests in EPIC Crude Holdings and 100% of the membership interests in EPIC GP and serves as operator of record for the Cactus III Pipeline.
In September, Plains raised $1.25 billion in aggregate senior unsecured notes, with proceeds allocated toward redeeming senior notes maturing in October 2025 and partially funding recently announced acquisitions.
The company exited the third quarter with a 3.3x leverage ratio, toward the low end of its target range of 3.25x to 3.75x.