Filed
by Great Plains Energy
Incorporated
pursuant
to Rule 425 under the Securities Act of 1933
and
deemed filed pursuant to Rule 14a-12
under
the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Subject
Company: Aquila, Inc.
Commission
File No.: 333-142715
This
filing consists of a joint press release issued by Great Plains Energy
Incorporated and Aquila, Inc. on July 27, 2007.
Media
Contacts:
Aquila
Al
Butkus
(816) 467-3616
Media
Relations
(816) 467-3000
Great
Plains
Matt
Tidwell
(816) 556-2069
Investor
Relations:
Aquila
Jason
Ketchum
(816) 467-3274
Toll-free
(800)
487-6661
Great
Plains Energy
Todd
Allen
(816) 556-2083
AQUILA
AND GREAT PLAINS ENERGY FILE FOR ANTITRUST CLEARANCE ON PROPOSED
TRANSACTION
KANSAS
CITY, MO, July 27, 2007 –
Aquila, Inc. (NYSE: ILA) and Great Plains Energy Incorporated (NYSE: GXP)
today
announced that they have filed notifications for antitrust clearance under
the
Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended. These filings
relate to the previously announced agreement for Great Plains Energy to acquire
all of the outstanding shares of Aquila in a stock-and-cash
transaction.
The
companies anticipate that the
30-day initial waiting period applicable to the proposed transaction under
Hart-Scott-Rodino will expire at 11:59 p.m. on August 27, 2007, unless this
period is terminated earlier or extended. The filing of Hart-Scott-Rodino
notifications and the expiration of the applicable waiting period is required
for each party to close the proposed transaction.
In
April 2007, the companies filed
the requisite state regulatory applications regarding the proposed transaction.
In May, the companies filed a joint application that was subsequently amended
in
June with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) requesting approval
for Great Plains Energy to acquire all of Aquila’s common stock With
today’s filing of the Hart-Scott-Rodino notifications, the companies have now
filed applications for all regulatory approvals and reviews required for
the
proposed acquisition.
Page
2,
Aquila and Great Plains Energy
The
closing of the Great Plains
acquisition is conditioned upon the completion of the sale of Aquila’s Colorado,
Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska operations to Black Hills Corporation. Aquila and
Black Hills have filed the requisite state and FERC applications with respect
to
the proposed asset sale, and expect to file Hart-Scott-Rodino antitrust
notifications regarding this proposed sale in the future.
###
Additional
Information and Where to Find It
In
connection with the acquisition of Aquila by Great Plains Energy, Great Plains
Energy filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form S-4 (Registration
No.
333-142715), containing a preliminary joint proxy statement/prospectus and
other
relevant materials. The final joint proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed
to
the stockholders of Great Plains Energy and Aquila. INVESTORS AND SECURITY
HOLDERS OF GREAT PLAINS ENERGY AND AQUILA ARE URGED TO READ THE JOINT PROXY
STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND THE OTHER RELEVANT MATERIALS WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE
BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT GREAT PLAINS ENERGY,
AQUILA AND THE ACQUISITION. The registration statement and joint proxy
statement/prospectus and other relevant materials (when they become available),
and any other documents filed by Great Plains Energy or Aquila, Inc., with
the
SEC, may be obtained free of charge at the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov. In
addition, investors and security holders may obtain free copies of the documents
(when they are available) filed with the SEC by Great Plains Energy by directing
a request to: Great Plains Energy, 1201 Walnut, Kansas City, MO 64106, Attn:
Investor Relations. Investors and security holders may obtain free copies
of the
documents filed with the SEC by Aquila (when they are available) by contacting
Aquila, 20 West Ninth Street, Kansas City, MO 64105, Attn: Investor
Relations.
Participants
in Proxy Solicitation
Great
Plains Energy, Aquila, and their respective executive officers and directors
may
be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies relating to the
proposed transaction. Information about the executive officers and directors
of
Great Plains Energy and their ownership of Great Plains Energy common stock
is
set forth in the proxy statement for Great Plains Energy’s 2007 Annual Meeting
of Stockholders, which was filed with the SEC on March 19,
2007. Information regarding the executive officers and directors of
Aquila and their ownership of Aquila common stock is set forth in the proxy
statement for Aquila’s 2007 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which was filed with
the SEC on March 21, 2007. Investors and security holders may obtain
more detailed information regarding the direct and indirect interests of
Great
Plains Energy, Aquila, and their respective executive officers and directors
in
the proposed transaction by reading the joint proxy statement/prospectus
regarding the proposed transaction.
