Private Equity
Canadian electric and gas utility business Fortis Inc (TSX: FTS) and Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC Private Ltd have closed their acquisition of ITC Holdings Corp, an electricity transmission company headquartered in Novi, Michigan. The previously-announced deal had a value of US$11.3 billion. With the close, ITC's common stock will be de-listed from the New York Stock Exchange. The ITC acquisition puts Fortis among the top 15 North American regulated investor-owned utilities ranked by enterprise value, the company said. Earlier this year, GIC agreed to take a 19.9 percent interest in ITC for about US$1.2 billion.
7 min read · 17 October 2016
Constellation Brands Inc said it will sell its Canadian wine business to the private equity group of Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan in a deal valued at about $1.03 billion (US$775.02 million), Reuters reported. The sale, which includes the Jackson-Triggs and Inniskillin wine brands, is expected to close by the end of the calendar year, the company said. Constellation will continue ownership of Black Velvet Whisky and the related production facility in Lethbridge, Alberta. Seven of the company's wine brands are among the top 20 in the Canadian market, Ontario Teachers' said.
2 min read · 17 October 2016
Supervalu Inc said it would sell its Save-A-Lot business to Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp for US$1.37 billion, more than a year after making public plans to spin off the discount grocery chain, Reuters reported. Save-A-Lot has a network of about 1,370 company-owned and licensed stores across 37 states in the United States, the Caribbean and Central America. Onex made the best offer in an auction for Save-A-Lot, Reuters reported in September.
2 min read · 17 October 2016
Biologic products company Sterinova Inc has opened its plant in Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec. The launch was made possible by about $70 million in funding from a group of Québec investors. They include the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, Fonds Manufacturier Québécois, Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole, Desjardins, Investissement Québec and Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED). Established in 2012, Sterinova specializes in the development and manufacture of sterile, ready-to-use injectable products for domestic and international markets.
5 min read · 14 October 2016
India's Reliance Communications Ltd is selling a 51 percent stake in its tower assets to Canada's Brookfield Infrastructure Group for US$1.65 billion, in a deal that will help cut the phone carrier's huge debt, Reuters reported. The company will use the proceeds of the deal with Brookfield "solely" to repay debt, it said. Controlled by billionaire Anil Ambani, Reliance Communications is the most leveraged among listed Indian phone carriers with its US$6.3 billion net debt being more than five times its operating profit.
2 min read · 14 October 2016
The Superior Court of Justice in Ontario has awarded costs of $1.2 million to West Face Capital, on a substantial indemnity basis, and $340,000 to Brandon Moyse, on a partial indemnity basis, in connection with the Wind Mobile Corp lawsuit, West Face said. The amount is to be paid by Catalyst Capital Group, which launched the suit based on an allegation that West Face misused confidential information when acquiring a stake in Wind in 2014. The case was dismissed in August. Last month, Catalyst said it would appeal that decision.
2 min read · 13 October 2016
A leading hedge fund investor in British betting company William Hill Plc, Parvus Asset Management, said it would oppose any reverse takeover of Canadian company Amaya Inc, given its "limited strategic logic," Reuters reported. Amaya and William Hill confirmed this week that they are in talks about combining in a merger of equals. Parvus said a deal would "destroy shareholder value" and wanted William Hill to pursue alternative options.
3 min read · 13 October 2016
Capital régional et coopératif Desjardins (CRCD) and Essor et Coopération Fund have invested $9 million in two Québec co-operatives. They are: Citadelle, a maple syrup producers co-operative, and Unicoop, a co-operative focused on the agriculture and agri-food industry. The proceeds of the deal will be used to support Citadelle's and Unicoop's expansion plans. CRCD and Essor et Coopération Fund are managed by Canadian private equity firm Desjardins Business Capital régional et coopératif.
4 min read · 13 October 2016
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec has made a $30 million investment in Harnois Groupe pétrolier, a Saint-Thomas, Québec-based distributor of petroleum products. The deal, to which the Fonds de solidarité FTQ also invested $15 million, will finance the acquisition of 36 Esso service stations located in the Montréal and Québec City regions. This will result in an increase in the Harnois network to more than 400 sites operating across Québec. Harnois is currently evaluating the development of flex-fuel stations, with a focus on integrating fast electric-charging terminals for about 10 stations.
3 min read · 13 October 2016
Alithya has bought Pro2p, a Montréal-based provider of business consulting services to help clients realize optimal integration of Oracle applications. No financial terms were released. Québec City's Alithya, a provider of strategic consulting and information technology services, said the deal is part of an accelerated growth strategy. Last year, Alithya was backed in its acquisition of Groupe conseil OSI by Québec investors Capital régional et coopérative Desjardins, Fonds de solidarité FTQ and Investissement Québec.
3 min read · 13 October 2016
