Private Equity
Corix Infrastructure Inc has agreed to sell Corix Water Products (CWP) to Deschênes Group Inc, a Montréal-based wholesale distributor to the plumbing, heating, electrical, waterworks, fire protection, HVAC-R and auto parts markets. No financial terms were released. CWP provides water and wastewater products across Canada and the United States. Deschênes said the deal will add to its offerings and increase its geographic footprint. Corix, a Vancouver-based provider of utility infrastructure solutions, is owned by British Columbia Investment Management Corp (bcIMC).
3 min read · 26 October 2017
Canadian financial cooperative Desjardins Group has unveiled a new fund to invest in Québec-based small businesses. The Desjardins Capital SME fund will be initially capitalized at about $100 million annually by Desjardins Private Wealth Management and Desjardins Capital and ultimately invest about $500 million over five years. It is expected to target equity and subordinated debt investments of $100,000 to $10 million to a range of developing Québec companies. Desjardins Capital oversees several private equity and venture capital funds, including retail fund Capital régional et coopératif Desjardins.
3 min read · 26 October 2017
Frontera Energy Corp (TSX: FEC) has agreed to sell its stake in Petroelectrica de los Llanos (PEL), owner of a 260-kilometre power transmission line that supplies power to Columbian oil fields and a pipeline. Frontera will sell the asset to EDEMSA for US$56 million. Most of the proceeds will be used for the company's proposed buy of Pacific Midstream Ltd for US$225 million. Frontera, a Toronto-based explorer and producer of crude oil and natural gas in Latin America, last year closed a US$500 million restructuring deal with Canadian private equity firm Catalyst Capital Group and other creditors.
3 min read · 26 October 2017
Canadian energy company TransCanada Corp (TSX, NYSE: TRP) has agreed to sell its Ontario solar portfolio to Axium Infrastructure. Axium, a Canadian infrastructure investment firm, agreed to pay about $540 million for the portfolio, which consists of eight facilities with a total generating capacity of 76 megawatts. The deal is expected to close this year. In a separate release, Axium said the acquisition will increase its portfolio investments to 39 solar installations located across Canada and the United States.
2 min read · 25 October 2017
U.S. fund Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) has agreed to buy Equis Energy, Asia’s largest independent renewable energy company, for US$3.7 billion with partners including sovereign fund China Investment Corp, underscoring growing global interest in renewables investment, Reuters reported. Singapore-headquartered Equis has more than 180 assets comprising solar, wind and hydro generation across the Asia Pacific region. Canada's Public Sector Pension Investment Board is also part of the buying consortium. A source said GIP would own a stake of 50 percent in Equis, while PSP and CIC would each own between 10 percent and 20 percent.
3 min read · 25 October 2017
Refresco Group NV has agreed to a 1.6 billion euro (US$1.9 billion) offer from a consortium led by French private equity firm PAI Partners, which would delist the Dutch bottling company less than three years after its flotation, Reuters reported. PAI and partner British Columbia Investment Management Corp (bcIMC) aim to buy all 81.2 million Refresco shares at 20 euros each, ending the short-lived listing on the Amsterdam stock exchange. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2018. In July, Refresco reached agreement to buy the bottling activities of Canada's Cott Corp for US$1.25 billion, a move that was intended in part to ward off a private equity takeover.
2 min read · 25 October 2017
Canadian apparel and lifestyle brand Roots Corp has wrapped up its initial public offering and will commence trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "ROOT". The IPO raised more than $200 million in proceeds, most of which will go to selling shareholders, including U.S. private equity firm Searchlight Capital Partners, which acquired Roots in 2015. Exercise of the IPO's greenshoe option may increase the amount raised to as much as $230 million. As a result, Searchlight will reduce its ownership of the company to 47.7 percent of issued and outstanding shares, or 42.9 percent if the greenshoe option is exercised, according to the prospectus.
3 min read · 25 October 2017
The Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) said it will open an office in Singapore in January 2018. The initiative recognizes Singapore's position as a major financial hub, OMERS President and CEO Michael Latimer said. It is also part of the $85-billion pension fund's plan to identify more opportunities in emerging markets, including both direct deals and opportunities leveraged with new local investment partners. OMERS sees particular potential in the Asia-Pacific region, Latimer said.
3 min read · 24 October 2017
Cinnaroll Bakeries Ltd, a Calgary-based bakery and maker of gourmet cinnamon rolls, has appointed Brad Turner as its CEO. Turner, a business executive with 25 years of experience, joined the company from WestJet, where he served as director of sales strategy and distribution. In September, Cinnaroll was acquired by Canadian family office Skidmore Development Group and Canadian private equity firm SouthPac Partners. In a PE Hub Canada interview, Skidmore's Jas Boparai and SouthPac's Jeremy South said they expected to soon hire a new chief executive for the company.
2 min read · 24 October 2017
MIE Holdings Corp, a Hong Kong holding company, said an affiliate has closed its acquisition of CQ Energy Canada Partnership, a Canadian oil and gas exploration and production business, from the United Kingdom's Centrica Plc. The deal, announced in June, saw Centrica sell the business to an MIE-led consortium for $722 million. The consortium included Can-China Global Resources Fund, a private equity fund managed by Hong Kong's MEC, and Switzerland's Mercuria Energy Group Ltd. The partnership reflects mostly Western Canadian natural gas assets that currently pump the equivalent of 56,070 barrels of oil a day.
3 min read · 24 October 2017
