Brad Meikle

Buyouts Dec. 30/Jan. 1 2014 - Digital Edition

VSS to launch third structured capital fund in 2014

Don’t call Veronis Suhler Stevenson a media firm.

BBGI acquires interests in Canadian bridge and hospital assets

Bilfinger Berger Global Infrastructure SICAV (BBGI) has acquired the remaining 50% equity and loan note interest in Golden Ears Bridge, which spans the Fraser River in British Columbia, and a 100% equity and loan note interest in Women's College Hospital in Toronto. Financial terms of the two transactions, both of which involve long-term PPP concession contracts, were not disclosed. BBGI is an infrastructure investment firm incorporated in Luxembourg, with portfolio assets in Europe, Australia and Canada. It has taken stakes in four Canadian projects in 2013, and currently has six Canadian portfolio assets in total.

OMERS fund says CIO to replace retiring CEO Nobrega - Reuters

Canadian pension fund OMERS said on Wednesday its chief investment officer, Michael Latimer, will take over as chief executive of the global dealmaker when Michael Nobrega retires at the end of March, reports Reuters. OMERS, which manages the pension plan for Ontario's public-sector municipal workers and has become a major investor around the world by virtue of its C$60 billion ($56 billion) in net assets, said Latimer will become CEO on March 31. Latimer has been chief investment officer since 2010. Before that he was president and chief executive at Oxford Properties Group, the real estate investment arm of OMERS.

PE-backed Seven Generations Energy raises $251 mln in equity, expands debt facility

Seven Generations Energy Ltd., an oil and gas developer based in Calgary, has raised equity financing in the gross amount of $251 million from offerings to institutional and individual investors, as well as management and employees. Net proceeds will be used to finance the drilling, completion and associated infrastructure investments to enable growth of the company's Kakwa River Project near Grande Prairie, Alberta. Seven Generations has also increased its debt capacity from $60 million to $150 million through its existing revolving credit facility. Backed by private equity firms since 2008, the company's major investors include ARC Financial Corp, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, KERN Partners and Natural Gas Partners.

Pinetree Capital increases equity stake in Integra Gold

Toronto-based resource-focused private equity firm Pinetree Capital has purchased 1 million common shares of Integra Gold Corp. No financial terms were disclosed. As a result of this transaction, Pinetree now holds an aggregate of 12,327,850 common shares of the company. Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Integra Gold is focused on exploring and developing its high-grade Lamaque Gold Project in Val-d'Or, Québec.

OMERS Private Equity's Logibec completes buy of QHR's EMC unit

Montréal-based Logibec Groupe Informatique Ltd, a portfolio company of OMERS Private Equity, has closed its buy of the enterprise management solutions division (EMS) division of QHR Corp for $20 million. The EMS division, which is a provider of administrative software solutions for healthcare organizations in Canada, will operate under the name of Quadrant. Update: OMERS Private Equity took Logibec private for $237 million in 2010. Société générale de financement du Québec partnered as a minority investor in that transaction.

A few things Canadian business owners should know about picking PE partners

When considering liquidity options for their business, many Canadian entrepreneurs seek out deal structures that allow them to sell most of their ownership to a private equity firm or other financial investor while remaining in a management capacity and retaining a stake to get a proverbial “second bite at the apple.” Glen Ampleford of Carpedia Capital believes there are key considerations that entrepreneurs must take into account to ensure they select the right partner and avoid shortcomings of the capital-raising process.

Beedie Capital Partners invests US$7 mln in boutique wine shop Vino Volo

Canadian private equity firm Beedie Capital Partners has provided US$7 million in growth capital to Vino Volo, a San Francisco-based operator of a chain of upscale wine tasting and wine retail establishments found primarily at airports across North America. Beedie made the investment through a series of debt and standby facilities intended to help the company continue its expansion into airport locations, and support the recently launched loyalty and direct-to-consumer programs. The Vancouver-based Beedie provides growth financing solutions for small to mid-market companies across a wide variety of industry sectors.

SCCP's real estate PE fund tops $400 mln in investments, firm plans new fund launch in 2014

Canadian private equity firm Second City Capital Partners (SCCP) has closed off its real estate-focused fund, Second City Capital II LP, to new investments, having recently exceeded $400 million in total investments, peHUB Canada has exclusively learned. The fund, which closed in Sept. 2012 at US$102.5 million, has developed a portfolio that includes 17 U.S.-based real estate acquisitions. SCCP plans to launch a new fund offering in the early part of 2014. Fund II was backed chiefly by a mix of Canadian and American institutional investors and family offices.