UNITIL CORP (UTL) 20.28 $0.27 (1.35%) 03:00AM (15 mins delay)

HAMPTON, N.H., May 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Unitil Corporation (NYSE: UTL) (www.unitil.com) announced today that it plans to make an underwritten public offering of 2.0 million newly issued shares of common stock pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Unitil has also granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 300,000 shares to cover any over-allotments. Net proceeds from this offering are expected to be used (i) to repay all amounts outstanding under the bridge credit facility that was used to partially finance the acquisitions of Northern Utilities, Inc. and Granite State Gas Transmission, Inc. (approximately $39.1 million) and (ii) for other general corporate purposes, including capital contributions to its distribution utilities and repayment of short-term debt.

RBC Capital Markets Corporation will act as the sole bookrunner for this offering. The co-managers for the offering are Janney Montgomery Scott LLC., Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., Brean Murray, Carret & Co., LLC., and Edward D. Jones & Co., L.P.

When available, a copy of the preliminary prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to this offering may be obtained from:

    RBC Capital Markets Corporation,
    3 World Financial Center,
    200 Vesey Street, 8th Floor,
    New York, NY 10281-8098
    Attention: Equity Syndicate
    Phone: 212-428-6670

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security and there will not be any sales in any jurisdiction in which such sales would be unlawful. The offer is being made only through the prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, which is part of a registration statement that became effective on April 29, 2009.

About Unitil

Unitil is a public utility holding company with subsidiaries providing electric and natural gas distribution service in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, natural gas distribution service in Maine and energy services throughout the northeast. Unitil serves approximately 170,000 utility customers in three states. Its utility affiliates include Unitil Energy Systems, Inc., Fitchburg Gas and Electric Light Company, Northern Utilities, Inc. and Granite State Gas Transmission, Inc. Its other subsidiaries include Unitil Service Corp. and its non-regulated business segment doing business as Usource.

Forward Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking statements, which are subject to the inherent risks and uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Certain factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to the following: our ability to integrate the business, operations, and personnel of Northern Utilities and Granite State and to achieve the estimated potential synergy savings attributable to our acquisition of those entities; our ability to retain existing customers and gain new customers; variations in weather; major storms; changes in the regulatory environment; interest rate fluctuation and credit market concerns; customers' preferences on energy sources; general economic conditions; increased competition; fluctuations in supply, demand, transmission capacity and prices for energy commodities; and customers' performance under multi-year energy brokering contracts, all of which are difficult to predict, and many of which are beyond the control of Unitil Corporation.

For more information, visit Unitil at www.unitil.com or call Mark Collin at 603-773-6612.

    Corporate Office:
    6 Liberty Lane West
    Hampton, NH 03842-1720
    800-999-6501

    Contact: Mark H. Collin
             603-773-6612
             collin@unitil.com

SOURCE Unitil Corporation