Questar Corporation (gas company)

Questar Corporation

Company type	Public (formerly listed on NYSE)
Industry	Natural gas utility
Predecessor	Mountain Fuel Supply Company
Founded	1928 in Utah, United States
Defunct	2015 (as independent entity)
Fate	Acquired by Dominion Resources in 2016; Questar Gas acquired by Enbridge in 2024
Successor	Dominion Resources (2016), Enbridge (2024)
Headquarters	Salt Lake City , United States
Area served	United States (primarily Utah and Wyoming)
Key people	Alan K. Allred (CEO from 2003)
Products	Natural gas exploration, production, transmission, and distribution
Owner	Enbridge (as of 2024)
Parent	Dominion Resources (2016–2024), Enbridge (2024–present)

Questar Corporation operated as a natural gas public utility headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah. In June 2024, the company was acquired by Enbridge in a transaction valued at $4.3 billion.

History

Established in Utah in 1984, Questar Corporation served as the holding company for Mountain Fuel Supply Company.

The origins trace back to 1922 when Ohio Oil Company discovered natural gas near Rock Springs, Wyoming. Following mergers with two other firms, Western Public Service Corporation was formed in 1928, with Mountain Fuel Supply Company acting as its hydrocarbon exploration and production division.

Amid the Great Depression, the stock value plummeted from $46 per share in 1929 to $3 per share by 1932 due to decreased demand. In 1935, shareholders restructured the organization by consolidating subsidiaries and relocating the headquarters to Salt Lake City; Mountain Fuel Supply Company became the unified corporate identity.

In the mid-1930s, natural gas reserves were found in Utah’s Clay Basin area. Throughout World War II, new utility customer sign-ups were suspended under directives from the War Production Board to conserve resources. The Church Buttes field in Wyoming was discovered in 1946.

Questar expanded in 1971 by acquiring Interstate Brick, the largest brick manufacturer in the Western United States, which it divested in 1990. The Brady field near Wyoming was identified in 1972. By 1976, shareholders debated management’s strategic emphasis on oil production versus natural gas utility operations.

In 1984, the company reverted to a holding company structure and adopted the name Questar Corporation. Five years later, Questar Telecom was founded to purchase specialized mobile radio assets; concurrently, FuelMaker was created to promote home refueling systems for natural gas-powered vehicles.

By 1993, Questar’s principal operations encompassed exploration and production through Wexpro Company and others; interstate transmission via Questar Pipeline Company; and retail distribution managed by Mountain Fuel.

The acquisition of oil and gas properties from Union Pacific Resources for $94.5 million occurred in 1994, alongside selling Questar Telecom to Nextel Communications in exchange for stock.

Mountain Fuel Supply Company was rebranded as Questar Gas Company in 1998. That same year, Questar purchased HSRTW Inc., which held oil and gas assets in Oklahoma, for $155 million.

In 2001, Shenandoah Energy was acquired by Questar for $406 million in cash plus debt assumption.

Leadership transitioned in 2003 when CEO D. N. "Nick" Rose retired and Alan K. Allred took over as chief executive officer.

In 2005, Knox Lawrence International acquired Consonus Inc., a subsidiary of Questar responsible for managing business data centers.

Questar joined the S&P 500 index in 2006 but was removed four years later in 2010.

On July 1, 2010, Questar separated its exploration and production segment into QEP Resources. Later, in December 2015, Tesoro Logistics LP purchased its natural gas pipeline and processing operations for $2.5 billion. QEP Resources was subsequently acquired by Diamondback Energy in 2021.

In March 2012, Questar relocated to a newly constructed $45 million LEED Silver-certified headquarters situated downtown Salt Lake City.

Dominion Resources completed its acquisition of Questar Corporation in September 2016. Following an agreement announced earlier with Dominion, Enbridge finalized the purchase of Questar Gas for $4.3 billion in June 2024.