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- Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway just closed its first major takeover since 2016 by acquiring Dominion Energy's natural gas transmission and storage business.
- Berkshire had $137 billion to deploy for its next deal, and while the buyout cost billions, it's nowhere near Buffett's biggest purchase.
- Here are the 10 biggest deals in Berkshire Hathaway's history, from Precision Castparts to Duracell.
- Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories.
Warren Buffett just closed his first major takeover since 2016, but it's nowhere near the size of his biggest-ever deal.
Berkshire Hathaway inked the $10 billion acquisition of Dominion Energy's natural gas transmission and storage business in early July, adding to its $100 billion energy portfolio. The move follows speculation as to whether Buffett would reuse his financial-crisis playbook and make a major deal during the coronavirus recession.
"We are very proud to be adding such a great portfolio of natural gas assets to our already strong energy business," Buffett said in a press release.
The holding company had been sitting on a $137 billion cash pile, waiting to find a takeover target as valuations tanked on coronavirus concerns. Some companies approached Berkshire for financial aid earlier in the pandemic, but Buffett said their access to Federal Reserve-backed loans erased the chance of a near-term buyout.
"The companies we were getting calls from, after the Fed acted, a number of them were able to get money in the public market frankly at terms we wouldn't have given," the CEO said in May.
Here are Berkshire Hathaway's 10 biggest acquisitions, in ascending order by dollar value.
10. Marmon Holdings
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Price: $4.5 billion
Founded by current Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Berkshire took over this holding company at the start of 2008.
9. Duracell
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Price: $4.7 billion
Berkshire's acquisition of this battery giant arrived in 2014 after Proctor & Gamble sought to spin off the business. Buffett's firm bought Duracell entirely with P&G stock, and the company's transfer to Berkshire wasn't completed until early 2016.
8. NV Energy
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Price: $5.6 billion
Berkshire's energy-focused subsidiary bought this Las Vegas-based utility company in early 2013.
7. Pacificorp
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Price: $9.4 billion
The same subsidiary, now known as Berkshire Hathaway Energy, bought this electric power distributor in 2005.
6. Lubrizol
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Price: $9.7 billion
Purchased by Berkshire in 2011, this chemical company was investigated by French authorities when a devastating 2019 fire saw thousands of tons of chemical products go up in smoke.
5. Dominion Energy
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Price: $10 billion
After straying away from major acquisitions for four years, Berkshire took over Dominion's natural gas transmission and storage business in July 2020. The deal involves Berkshire gaining complete ownership of Dominion Energy Transmission, Questar Pipeline, and Carolina Gas Transmission.
4. General Reinsurance
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Price: $22 billion
One of Berkshire's older multibillion-dollar deals, Buffett took over General Reinsurance in 1998 before combining it with Cologne Re and marketing the two as Gen Re.
3. Kraft Heinz
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Price: $28 billion
Berkshire and 3G Capital took over this ketchup maker in 2013 before merging it with food titan Kraft two years later.
2. Burlington Northern Santa Fe
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Price: $34 billion
Berkshire Hathaway took a controlling stake in this railway company in late 2009. Though the purchase totaled $34 billion, the assumption of $10 billion in company debt makes the Burlington Northern Santa Fe takeover Berkshire's largest in history.
1. Precision Castparts
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Price: $37 billion
While the aforementioned railway deal may be largest when accounting for debt, Berkshire's 2016 purchase of this industrial goods firm is the largest acquisition made by Buffett's holding company.