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☆ Canada's Brookfield raises record $28 billion for infrastructure fund
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 1 (Reuters) - Canada's Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.TO) said on Friday it had raised $28 billion for its largest-ever fund, wagering on infrastructure assets the company believes would benefit from a shift to "deglobalization", given recent geopolitical tensions. Brookfield said the fund has already deployed 40% of its capital in six investments including renewable, transport, data center and telecom tower assets. The company, which manages over $850 billion in assets, said it had also raised $2 billion for related co-investment vehicles. Besides "deglobalization", Brookfield's latest fund will also focus on infrastructure assets tied to digitalization and decarbonization, the company said. The company had raised $20 billion for its previous global infrastructure fund in 2020.

Persons: Brookfield, Niket, Pooja Desai Organizations: Brookfield Asset Management, Thomson Locations: Brookfield, Ukraine, Bengaluru

☆ EIG CEO says consortium no longer willing to negotiate with Origin's top investor
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Blair Thomas, CEO of EIG, poses in an undated handout photo obtained January 5, 2021. Acquire Licensing RightsSYDNEY, Nov 23 (Reuters) - EIG Partners CEO Blair Thomas said on Thursday the consortium behind the $10.6 billion bid for Origin Energy (ORG.AX) was "done" negotiating with top shareholder AustralianSuper in an attempt to gain its backing for the offer. Thomas said he believed AustralianSuper, which holds 16.5% of Origin, was acting against the best interests of the company's remaining shareholders. EIG is part of the consortium led by Canada's Brookfield. Reporting by Scott Murdoch in Sydney; Editing by Jamie FreedOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Blair Thomas, Danthi, Thomas, Canada's, Scott Murdoch, Jamie Freed Organizations: Rights, EIG, Origin Energy, Thomson Locations: Canada's Brookfield, Sydney

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSYDNEY, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Proxy advisor CGI Glass Lewis on Thursday recommended Origin Energy (ORG.AX) shareholders vote in favour of a $10.5 billion bid from a consortium led by Canada's Brookfield (BN.TO), despite opposition from the target's largest shareholder. Brookfield and EIG Partners last week offered a "best and final" A$9.53 per share for Origin after raising a previous bid. Australia's largest pension fund AustralianSuper opposes the offer and intends to use its 15% stake to vote against the deal at a Nov. 23 shareholder meeting. Origin Energy shares traded 1.9% higher at A$8.905 at 2 p.m. AEDT (0300 GMT) and are up 5.1% since the close of trade on Nov. 2, when AustralianSuper rejected the improved offer. Reporting by Scott Murdoch and Lewis Jackson; Editing by Leslie Adler and Jamie FreedOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Glass, Canada's Brookfield, AustralianSuper, Glass Lewis, Scott Murdoch, Lewis Jackson, Leslie Adler, Jamie Freed Organizations: Brookfield, REUTERS, Rights, Energy, EIG Partners, Services, Origin Energy, Australia Pacific LNG, Thomson Locations: Brookfield, Australia

"AustralianSuper believes Origin has a highly strategic portfolio of assets to participate in, and benefit from, the energy transition," a spokesperson said. Origin shares plunged as much as 5.6% to A$8.565 in high-volume trading following the news, as AustralianSuper's 13.68% holding could scupper a deal that requires approval from 75% of the register if not all investors vote. Should the deal fail at the shareholder vote scheduled for Nov. 23, a revised agreement allows the consortium to make a subsequent off-market bid if it buys 5% or more of Origin shares. "If it gets voted down, Brookfield aren't obligated to come back with an off-market takeover offer, but they may be inclined to," he said. Should the deal close, Brookfield and its partners GIC and Temasek will own Origin's Energy Markets business, which includes power generation and retailing.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, AustralianSuper, Canada's Brookfield, Brookfield, Jamie Hannah, Simon Mawhinney, Allan Gray, Stewart Upson, Scott Murdoch, Lewis Jackson, Sameer Manekar, Jamie Freed Organizations: Brookfield, REUTERS, SYDNEY, bourse, Brookfield Asia, Energy Markets, Saudi Arabia's Aramco, Australia Pacific LNG, Thomson Locations: VanEck, Brookfield, Temasek, Saudi, Australia, Sydney, Bengaluru

SYDNEY, Sept 29 (Reuters) - The blocking of three major deals by Australia's antitrust regulator in the past year was a coincidence, its chair told Reuters, pushing back against concerns among bankers that it has become deal-averse. "There happens to have been a sequence, frankly coincidentally as it turns out, of oppositions," ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said in an interview. There are some concerns that it could be blocked as Brookfield owns AusNet, a poles and wires asset in Victoria state. Cass-Gottlieb also said she doubted foreign investors have been dissuaded from pursuing deals in Australia which does not require companies to get formal clearance before proceeding with a takeover. "The recent stream of merger blockages will make foreign investors think twice."

Persons: Gina Cass, Gottlieb, Canada's Brookfield, Cass, Stephen Corones, Hannah Marshall, it's, Byron Kaye, Scott Murdoch, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: Australian Competition, Consumer Commission, Telstra, TPG, ANZ, Transurban, Origin Energy, Brookfield, FOCUS Cass, Investors, Queensland University of Technology, Cass, Marque Lawyers, Thomson Locations: Melbourne, AusNet, Victoria, Australia, Queensland

☆ SBB shares up 37% on cash infusion, end of strategy review
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

OSLO, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Shares of Swedish property group SBB (SBBb.ST) rose 37% in early trade on Monday after it announced on Sunday it would reorganise its business, securing an 8 billion crown ($719 million) cash boost and ending a strategic review. "The fact that SBB is freeing up 8 billion crowns must be seen in a very positive light. In a crisis, it is almost all about having liquidity, and SBB is getting it now," Carlsquare analyst Bertil Nilsson said. SBB, which has seen its shares plunge 95% since early 2022 on concerns over the group's viability, also on Sunday presented a decentralised structure to boost its transparency and funding options. ($1 = 11.1296 Swedish crowns)Reporting by Terje Solsvik and Jesus Calero, editing by Anna RingstromOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Bertil Nilsson, Terje Solsvik, Jesus Calero, Anna Ringstrom Organizations: SBB, EduCo, Brookfield Asset Management, Brookfield, Core Infrastructure Partners, Thomson Locations: OSLO, EduCo, Brookfield, Swedish

☆ SBB sells 1.16% of education unit, receives $700 million as part of loan repayment
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( Rishabh Jaiswal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sept 24 (Reuters) - Swedish property group SBB (SBBb.ST) on Sunday divested 1.16% of its education subsidiary EduCo to Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure Partners for around 242 million Swedish crowns ($21.73 million) as it looks to bolster its finances. SBB will hold approximately 49.84% of EduCo after the divestment, following which EduCo will be controlled by Brookfield. As part of the deal announced on Sunday, EduCo will repay part of its inter-company loan from SBB, resulting in the Stockholm-based company receiving approximately 7.8 billion Swedish crowns ($700.46 million) in cash. SBB's remaining loan to EduCo will be around 5.5 billion Swedish crowns. Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure Partners is the infrastructure fund of Canada's Brookfield Asset Management(BAM.TO).

Persons: EduCo, Brookfield, Rishabh, Barbara Lewis, Sharon Singleton Organizations: SBB, Sunday, Brookfield, Core Infrastructure Partners, International Monetary Fund, Brookfield Asset Management, Community, Thomson Locations: Brookfield, Sweden, Stockholm, EduCo, Bengaluru

LONDON, July 28 (Reuters) - French telecoms firm TDF is studying options for its fibre business including a sale, four people familiar with the matter told Reuters, in a deal that could value the fibre unit upwards of 1 billion euros. The sellers are looking for as much as 1.3 billion to 1.6 billion euros for the fibre unit, according to one of the people, a price that buyers may find difficult to swallow. TDF - a former unit of France's leading telecoms operator Orange - provides broadcasting, fibre and telecoms infrastructure with some of its radio antennas sitting on top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The fibre unit's EbitdaAL, which deducts the cost of the leases from EBITDA, reached 28.7 million euros last year up from 21.6 million euros a year earlier, while revenues grew 42.8% to 52 million euros, according to TDF’s latest annual results. Two of the sources said the fibre unit's valuation will depend on the number of homes connected to fibre, market penetration and growth rate.

Persons: Brookfield, Sweden's, Les Echos, Andres Gonzalez, Amy, Jo Crowley, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: TDF, Reuters, Brookfield Asset Management, BNP Paribas, BNP, Brookfield, Orange, Eiffel, Sweden's EQT Partners, PSP Investments, APG, Management, Arcus Infrastructure Partners, Agricole, CAA, Thomson Locations: Paris, Europe, TDF, EBITDA

Now it is at the epicentre of a property crash that threatens to engulf the Nordic state's economy. It has said it plans on selling roughly 6 billion Swedish crowns worth of assets this year. Speculators are betting that the stock price has further to fall. SBB shares are subject to more short-selling - a bet that the stock price will drop - than any other Swedish company, according to data from the financial regulator. "If, on the other hand, the SBB will be bought up, then the small shareholders will probably lose everything."

Persons: Maria De Geer, who've, Ilija Batljan, Batljan, Robert Bergqvist, SEB, Leiv Synnes, pare, De Geer, Pablo Mayo, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: SBB, Swedish Shareholders Association, Organisation for Economic Cooperation, Development, Asset Management, SBB Treasury Oyj, Reuters, Thomson Locations: STOCKHOLM, FRANKFURT, Sweden, Swedish, Cerqueiro, London

☆ Brookfield buys payments firm Network International for $2.76 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 9 (Reuters) - Canada's Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.TO) said on Friday it would buy payments provider Network International (NETW.L) for 2.2 billion pounds ($2.76 billion) in cash, as it expands its payments business in the Middle East and Africa. The Canadian firm said Network directors intended to unanimously recommend that shareholders vote in favour of the deal. Brookfield, which has over $5 billion in assets under management in the Middle East, last year bought a 60% stake in Magnati, the payments business of First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB.AD). The investment firm said the deal would be financed by a combination of equity investment, as part of which Brookfield Business Partners expects to invest up to about $150 million. Network International, whose top investors include Capital Research and Mastercard UK, listed in London in April 2019 at an initial public offering price of 435 pence a share.

Persons: Brookfield, Aby Jose Koilparambil, Eva Mathews, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Jason Neely Organizations: Brookfield Asset Management, Network, United, Capital, Francisco Partners, Brookfield, Abu Dhabi Bank, Brookfield Business Partners, Network International, Capital Research, Mastercard, Thomson Locations: Brookfield, East, Africa, United Arab Emirates, Magnati, London, Bengaluru

☆ NZ's Infratil to buy stake in One New Zealand for $1.1 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Navya Mittal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 7 (Reuters) - New Zealand's infrastructure investor Infratil (IFT.NZ) said on Wednesday it will acquire Canada's Brookfield Asset Management's (BAM.TO) stake in One New Zealand for NZ$1.8 billion ($1.1 billion) to strengthen its digital and renewable portfolio. Infratil will have full control over the country's second biggest mobile market operator by market share after buying the 49.95% stake. One New Zealand, previously known as Vodafone NZ, has 2.7 million connections of its mobile and broadband networks. "Since acquiring One New Zealand with Brookfield in 2019, we have invested meaningful capital to support network expansion, including the roll-out of 5G, and are pleased to now assume full ownership of the business," said William Smales, chief investment officer at Morrison & Co, which manages Infratil. ($1 = 1.6466 New Zealand dollars)Reporting by Navya Mittal in Bengaluru; Editing by Chris Reese, Lisa Shumaker and Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Jason Boyes, William Smales, Navya Mittal, Chris Reese, Lisa Shumaker, Sherry Jacob, Phillips Organizations: NZ, Vodafone NZ, Morrison & Co, Zealand, Thomson Locations: New Zealand, Zealand, Brookfield, Bengaluru

☆ Australia's Origin Energy raises earnings view on unexpected UK gains
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 1 (Reuters) - Australia's Origin Energy (ORG.AX) on Monday sharply raised the full-year earnings outlook for its key energy markets division for a second time, helped mainly by a stronger-than-expected contribution from U.K.-based energy retailer Octopus Energy. Origin now expects underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for its energy markets division for fiscal year 2023 to be between A$950 million ($628 million) and A$1,200 million, much higher than the prior range between A$600 million and A$730 million. Origin holds a 20% stake in Octopus Energy, which last year contributed a loss of A$36 million to Origin's EBITDA. Shares of the Sydney-headquartered company were up 0.4% at A$8.38 by 0017 GMT. ($1 = 1.5124 Australian dollars)Reporting by Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Origin, Australia's top energy retailer, on Monday agreed to the long-running takeover offer from the consortium, nearing the conclusion of one of the country's biggest private equity-backed buyouts. Once the deal is completed, EIG's MidOcean Energy will take control of Origin's integrated gas business. Thomas said government policy swings world over are a by-product of the volatility associated with the tension between energy security and the transition to cleaner energy. Origin, Australia's No. Brookfield said it plans to invest a further A$20 billion of capital to fully replace Origin's power generation and its power purchases with green power over a decade.

Ardian, which is the second largest shareholder in INWIT behind European tower company Vantage Towers AG (VTWRn.DE), wants to take INWIT private and is working with advisers at JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) on a potential offer, the people said. Deutsche Telekom last year sold 51% of its tower business Funkturm to a consortium of Canada's Brookfield and U.S. private equity firm DigitalBridge. Any offer for INWIT could take months to materialise as preparations remain at a preliminary stage, one of the people said. The sources cautioned that an offer is not certain and asked not to be identified because the deliberations are confidential. Ardian, Vantage Towers, INWIT and JPMorgan declined to comment.

Nov 10 (Reuters) - Origin Energy Ltd (ORG.AX), Australia's no.2 power producer and energy retailer, backed an A$18.4 billion ($11.8 billion) non-binding buyout offer from a consortium led by Canada's Brookfield Asset Management, the companies said on Thursday. The deal sent Origin's share price soaring nearly 40% in early trade to A$8.14. Origin opened its books to the consortium after it raised its offer to A$9 per share in cash, a near 55% premium to Origin's last close of A$5.81. The bid from Brookfield comes after it was rebuffed earlier this year when it led a $3.5 billion takeover offer for Australia's top power producer, AGL Energy (AGL.AX). Under the indicative proposal submitted on Thursday, Brookfield would acquire Origin's energy markets business, while MidOcean Energy, the other consortium partner, would take control of Origin's integrated gas business, including its 27.5% stake in Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG).

☆ Amid historic drought, California expected to approve $140 mln desalination plant
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Daniel Trotta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Oct 13 (Reuters) - A $140 million desalination plant is expected to be approved by California regulators on Thursday as the U.S. state contends with how to convert ocean water into drinking water amid the worst drought in 1,200 years. Instead of relying on water pumped from hundreds of miles (km) away, through the State Water Project or the Colorado River, the South Coast Water District would now have its own water supply. The Doheny plant would produce 5 million gallons of drinking water per day, more than enough to meet the needs of the district's 35,000 people. The Coastal Commission staff, which recommended rejecting Poseidon, favors building Doheny, which would be the 12th desalination plant approved by the regulator. The Doheny plant will use a sub-surface intake that creates a barely perceptible current.

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