IFM Investors buys majority stake in Associated British Ports in deal valuing operator above £10bn

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IFM buys ABP majority stake

Highlights

IFM Investors acquires the 34% CPPIB and 30% OMERS stakes in Associated British Ports, taking a majority position at over £10bn valuation.
ABP operates 19 UK ports handling about 25% of British seaborne trade, with the stake sale marking a significant shift in UK transport infrastructure ownership.
IFM, managing about $96bn in infrastructure assets and backed by major pension funds, plans to fund further ABP development and reinforce its UK infrastructure focus.

Transaction terms and ownership change

As reported by Financial Times, IFM Investors has bought the 34% stake held by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and the 30% stake owned by Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, securing a majority position in ABP after outbidding KKR, Apollo and Indian industrialist Gautam Adani.

The exact terms of the sale are not disclosed, but sources familiar with the agreement say the deal values the port operator at more than £10bn. James Bryce, managing director and head of infrastructure at CPP Investments, says the sale provides “an attractive opportunity to realize the value of our long-term investment.”

ABP was created in the early 1980s after the privatization of the British Transport Docks Board, was listed in 1983 and was taken private in 2006 in a £2.8bn deal backed by investors including Goldman Sachs’ infrastructure arm and OMERS. CPPIB acquired its stake in 2015, while other major shareholders include Singapore’s GIC and the Kuwait Investment Authority’s Wren House Infrastructure.

UK infrastructure significance and investor strategy

ABP operates 19 ports across the UK, including Southampton, the country’s third-largest container port, and the Humber, a major industrial hub developed by the company. Together, its ports handle about 25% of Britain’s seaborne trade, making the ownership change significant for the UK transport and logistics sector.

CPPIB and OMERS are reported in February to be exploring a sale of their holdings. Kyle Mangini, IFM’s global head of infrastructure, says the firm plans to support further development of ABP’s infrastructure and operations, adding that the transaction reflects IFM’s long-term commitment to channeling pension capital into UK infrastructure.

IFM is backed by 15 Australian pension funds and the UK’s National Employment Savings Trust, and it owns stakes in ports around the world while managing about $96bn in infrastructure assets. Last year, Nest committed £5bn to invest with IFM.

Our earlier article on India’s disinvestment programme explained that most proceeds since FY2016 have come through market-linked routes such as ETFs, public issues and buybacks, while strategic sales involving transfer of control have contributed relatively little. It also highlighted how the planned IDBI Bank stake sale stands out in scale versus recent strategic deals and why the absence of large control-transfer transactions has often left disinvestment targets unmet.

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