HOUSTON - Kinder Morgan Inc. said Monday its board of directors approved a $15 billion buyout plan from the pipeline operator's management to take the company private at a higher per-share price than announced three months ago.

Under terms of the deal, a management-led investment group would pay Kinder Morgan shareholders $107.50 for each share of common stock they hold - a 7.5 percent jump over the original buyout price of $100 per share, the Houston-based company said.

Kinder Morgan shares rose as high as $104.50 a share - surpassing the 52-week range of $81 to $103.75 - before closing at $104.27, up $2.57, or 2.5 percent.

The company has about 80,000 natural gas customers in Colorado. It also employs about 100 in the state, including 45 at its retail gas distribution headquarters in Lakewood.

The new offer from Kinder Morgan Chairman and CEO Richard D. Kinder and other senior managers and outside investors represents a 5.7 percent premium over the company's closing stock price on Friday and a 27 percent premium over the closing price on May 26, the last trading day before the group made its initial proposal. The deal remains worth $22 billion, including $7 billion in assumed debt.