US-based investment company, BlackRock, has agreed to buy compatriot independent infrastructure fund manager, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), in a USD 12.5 billion cash and shares deal.
Under the deal, the world’s largest asset manager will take over GIP for USD 3 billion in cash and approximately 12 million shares of BlackRock common stock.
Founded in 2006, GIP is the “world’s largest independent infrastructure manager by assets under management (AUM) globally”, with over USD 100 billion in AUM across infrastructure equity and credit strategies supported by approximately 400 employees.
The company has several offshore wind projects in its portfolio including the 330 MW Gode Wind 1, the 450 MW Borkum Riffgrund 2, and the 1.2 GW Hornsea 1.
GIP also owns the offshore wind developer Skyborn Renewables and is developing an offshore wind project in the New York Bight area in a joint venture with Ocean Winds.
In addition, the New York-based company has stakes in Gatwick, Edinburgh, and Sydney airports, Pacific National and Italo, Peel ports and Port of Melbourne, and several renewables platforms, including Clearway, Vena, Atlas, and Eolian.
The transaction, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2024 subject to customary regulatory approvals and other closing conditions, will create a “market-leading”, multi-asset class infrastructure investing platform with a combined client AUM of over USD 150 billion across equity, debt, and solutions.
The GIP management team, led by Bayo Ogunlesi and four of its founding partners, will lead the combined infrastructure platform.
“Infrastructure is one of the most exciting long-term investment opportunities, as a number of structural shifts re-shape the global economy. We believe the expansion of both physical and digital infrastructure will continue to accelerate, as governments prioritize self-sufficiency and security through increased domestic industrial capacity, energy independence, and onshoring or near-shoring of critical sectors. Policymakers are only just beginning to implement once-in-a-generation financial incentives for new infrastructure technologies and projects,” said Laurence D. Fink, BlackRock Chairman and CEO.
BlackRock is one of the world’s leading providers of investment, advisory, and risk management solutions.
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