On December 14, 2009, ExxonMobil agreed to acquire XTO Energy Inc. through a merger.[17] At the time of the acquisition, ExxonMobil was the world's largest publicly traded oil company and XTO was the largest natural gas producer in the United States, with more than 3,000 employees and revenue of $7.9 billion in the previous year.[11][18] ExxonMobil acquired XTO in a deal valued at $36 billion, involving the issuance of 416 million shares of stock and assuming the company's $11 billion in debt.[19][20] The deal increased ExxonMobil's U.S. natural gas production to 3.68 billion cubic feet per day, making it the largest producer in the U.S.[21] The purchase by ExxonMobil was the largest by the company since the deal that created ExxonMobil in 1999.[22] The acquisition was finalized in June 2010.[5]