Canada-based Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) has sold its 50 per cent stake in Autopista Central de Chile, a Santiago-based toll road, to Abertis Infraestructuras SA (“Abertis”) for approximately C$1.5 billion.Autopista Central is a 61-kilometre, six-lane highway in Santiago that went into operation in 2007. AIMCo acquired a 50 per cent stake in the road in December 2010, joining a consortium of companies with 100 per cent ownership of Autopista Central SA unit, a Santiago-based provider of toll roads operations services. The consortium, now solely owned by Abertis, holds the concession until 2031.
“AIMCo has enjoyed working with the strong management team of Autopista Central and our partner Abertis over the last five years,” stated Ben Hawkins, Senior Vice President, Infrastructure & Timberlands at AIMCo. “Autopista Central has one of the best management teams in the industry, and the acquisition will allow Abertis to achieve further synergies and benefits to its portfolio. We are happy to have been an owner of this important piece of infrastructure to Santiago, and remain committed to investing further in Chile given the right opportunities.”
AIMCo Chief Executive Officer, Kevin Uebelein, added: “Today’s transaction realises excellent gains for AIMCo’s clients. Our talented and capable team of Infrastructure investment professionals maximised the value of this asset through each stage of the investment lifecycle as evidenced by this outcome.”
