Private Equity
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) has provided a loan of about $313 million (US$250 million) to Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM), a Medellín, Colombia-based electricity producer and distributor. The loan, which forms part of a US$1 billion facility led by IDB Invest, a member of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, will support EPM's growth, including development of the Ituango Hydroelectric Project. The investment is CDPQ's second in Colombia. Last October, the pension fund provided a senior loan to Pacifico 2, a toll highway sponsored by Odinsa SA.
3 min read · 11 January 2018
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec Chief Executive Michael Sabia said he believes that if U.S. President Donald Trump abandons the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico, the United States would then negotiate a new deal with Canada, Reuters reported. Sabia was speaking at a Thomson Reuters Breakingviews event in Toronto discussing predictions for 2018 alongside Brookfield Asset Management Chief Executive Bruce Flatt. Canada is increasingly convinced that Trump will soon announce the United States intends to pull out of NAFTA, Reuters reported earlier this week, sending the Canadian and Mexican currencies lower and hurting stocks. Sabia added that other factors, such as entrepreneurial activity, could help mitigate the impact of the NAFTA talks failing.
2 min read · 11 January 2018
Dane Creek Capital Corp (DCCC), a Canadian pet-focused merchant bank, has increased its stake in Your True Companion Pet Products Inc, a Guelph, Ontario maker of dehydrated raw pet treats and health supplements for dogs and cats. No financial terms were released for the deal, which saw DCCC grow its interest to 74 percent from 30 percent. The investment supported a strategic refocusing of Companion Pet Products, achieved through the sale of its non-manufacturing supplements assets to Baie Run Pet Products Inc. Baie Run was formed by DCCC last year.
3 min read · 10 January 2018
Pinnacle Renewable Energy Group, an industrial-wood-pellet maker and distributor, this week priced its recently filed initial public offering in Canada. The Richmond, British Columbia, company is seeking to raise $175 million by selling common shares at $13 to $15 per unit, the updated prospectus shows. The issue’s greenshoe option, if fully exercised, would bring the total raised to more than $200 million. Pinnacle has been majority owned by ONCAP, the mid-market private equity arm of Onex Corp, since 2011. Its IPO is 2018’s first in Canada backed by a PE firm. PE and venture capital firms looking to monetize their investments played a key role in the domestic IPO market last year, raising a combined $2.3 billion.
2 min read · 10 January 2018
Laval, Québec-based medical technology company Ergoresearch Ltd (TSX-V: ERG) has agreed to be taken private by management shareholders Sylvain Boucher and Danielle Boucher in partnership with Walter Capital Partners, a Canadian private equity firm. The management shareholders, who currently hold a 24.3 percent interest in the company, will with Walter Capital pay $0.30 per unit in cash. Founded in 1998, Ergoresearch designs and makes technology for intelligent orthotics, medical devices and software in the orthopedic industry. It elected to partner with the newly recapitalized Walter Capital following a strategic review process.
6 min read · 10 January 2018
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has partnered with U.S. real estate investment firm Cortland Partners and Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC in a joint venture targeting US$500 million to U.S. multifamily real estate investments. CPPIB and GIC will each own a 45 percent interest in the joint venture, with Cortland holding 10 percent. The joint venture has initially acquired three Class B garden-style rental communities in Denver, Colorado, Raleigh, North Carolina and Austin, Texas. It will pursue additional opportunities primarily in the Southern and Southeastern United States.
4 min read · 09 January 2018
U.S. private equity firm GI Partners has acquired the Ericsson ICT Data Center in Montréal from Swedish networking and telecommunications company Ericsson AB (Nasdaq: ERIC). No financial terms were disclosed. The facility, completed in December 2016, comprises 215,000 square feet of turnkey data centre and shell space to support growth. It is designed to expand to more than 50 megawatts of primary power. GI Partners said the acquisition brings total properties managed in the firm's data centre portfolio to 21.
2 min read · 09 January 2018
Pure Industrial Real Estate Trust (TSX: AAR.UN), a Vancouver-based owner and operator of industrial properties in Canadian and U.S. markets, has agreed to be acquired by Blackstone Property Partners, the real estate investment arm of Blackstone Group. Blackstone agreed to buy all of the outstanding trust units of Pure for $8.10 per unit in an all-cash transaction valued at $3.8 billion, including debt. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter. Listed in 2007, Pure reports generating a return of more than 345 percent since inception. It currently holds 168 properties located across North America, according to its website.
5 min read · 09 January 2018
U.S. private equity firm Gryphon Investors has acquired Atlanta Cheesecake Co (ACC), a Kennesaw, Georgia-based maker of frozen cheesecakes for in-store bakeries and grocery and club food stores in North America. No financial terms were disclosed. Gryphon said ACC will be combined with The Original Cakerie, a Canadian maker of frozen desserts, acquired in 2015, and Lawler Foods Ltd, a U.S. maker of gourmet cheesecakes, cakes and pies, acquired in 2016. The three brands form part of Gryphon-owned umbrella company Dessert Holdings, based in St. Paul, Minnesota.
4 min read · 09 January 2018
Sound United LLC has acquired Classé Audio, a Montréal-based maker of high-performance music and theatre components. No financial terms were released for the deal, which saw Classé Audio sold by its British owner and distributor B&W Group. Sound United, an audio brands platform affiliated with DEI Holdings, said Dave Nauber, Classé Audio's president, will continue to lead the business. DEI, which is based in Vista, California, was acquired by U.S. private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners in 2011.
3 min read · 08 January 2018
