Energy company Black Hills Corp said on July 12 it signed a deal to buy natural gas utility company SourceGas Holdings LLC for about $1.9 billion, Reuters reported that day.

The acquisition of Golden, Colorado-based SourceGas will increase Black Hill's customer base by 55 percent to more than 1.2 million customers, the company said.

The owners of SourceGas, Alinda Capital Partners and GE Energy Financial Services, were exploring a sale of the company, according to media reports.

SourceGas operates more than 19,340 miles of natural gas distribution, gathering and transmission pipelines as well as storage facilities in Arkansas, Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming.

General Electric and Alinda formed SourceGas in 2007 through the acquisition of a Kinder Morgan Incunit for $710 million.

The acquisition, expected to be completed in the first half of 2016, is subject to various regulatory approvals.