Australian fund manager Macquarie is reportedly just months away from launching a sales process for its 25% stake in UK communications infrastructure firm Arqiva.
Canadian pension fund giants including Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), which…
Australian fund manager Macquarie is reportedly just months away from launching a sales process for its 25% stake in UK communications infrastructure firm Arqiva.
Canadian pension fund giants including Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), which is Arqiva’s largest shareholder, are expected to compete for the holding that has been valued at £600m (US$969m), reported the Financial Times.
Macquarie Capital will advise on the bidding process, added the report.
Arqiva and Macquarie, which invests in the group through the Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 2, declined to comment.
CPPIB currently owns a 48% stake and also declined to comment.
The speculation comes after Arqiva shored up its financial position with a £3.7bn bond and loan transaction earlier this year. That deal saw it refinance complex debt originally secured back in 2007, leaving it with £1.6bn of bank debt – split roughly 50/50 between three year and five year terms – which it plans to replace with investment grade bonds.
Arqiva has since priced a £400m bond that will be used to pay down an equivalent amount of the three-year term facilities.
The rumours are also fuelled by Canadian pension funds appearing increasingly keen to directly invest in infrastructure assets, as low bond yields lead them to search for other relatively safe areas for higher returns.
CPPIB and Canada’s PSP Investments are reportedly also in the running to acquire towerco TeleDiffusion de France (TDF)’s French assets.
Arqiva provides television, radio, satellite and wireless communications infrastructure in the UK. It also has operations in Ireland, mainland Europe, the US, and recently opened up its first office in Singapore.
The company posted EBITDA for the year to end of June 2012 at £403m, up 11.3% compared with the year before. Revenues over the year increased slightly to £831.3m, compared with £826.3m.
