OREANDA-NEWS. Williams (NYSE: WMB) received the Deal of the Year award last night at the Global Energy Awards in New York for its acquisition of controlling interest in Oklahoma City-based Access Midstream Partners, L.P. on July 1, 2014.

Williams was recognized for the strategic significance and successful closure of the Access Midstream acquisition, a transaction that poises Williams to reach its goal of becoming North America's top provider of natural gas infrastructure.

"This award underscores the magnitude of the Williams-Access combination in the natural gas infrastructure space," said Williams' Chief Executive Officer Alan Armstrong. "I appreciate the recognition and most importantly want to thank employees at Williams and Access for their tremendous work integrating the organizations. What's emerging is a best-in-class energy infrastructure provider with superior assets, enhanced positions in key basins and more service and market opportunities for our customers."

The addition of Access Midstream more than doubles the volume of natural gas Williams gathers each day to 11 billion cubic feet and makes Williams a natural gas powerhouse with positions in most key North American production basins. It combines the depth of Access Midstream's expertise in the gathering and processing function with the breadth of Williams' capabilities across the broader natural gas value chain.

Finalists for the Global Energy Awards were chosen from a list of nearly 250 nominations, based on their performance for each category's criteria within the designated time frame. The independent panel of judges included former regulators, past heads of major energy companies, leading academics and international energy experts.

The Global Energy Awards have been held every year since 1999. The competition is sponsored by Platts - a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies that publishes information about worldwide energy markets and news.