Abu Dhabi SWF joins M.Stanley in UK rail bid-paper

Reuters
2 Min Read

DUBAI: The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) has agreed to join Morgan Stanley and private equity group 3i in a bid for the high-speed railway linking London with the Channel Tunnel, Abu Dhabi’s National newspaper said.

State-owned ADIA, considered the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, is in the "very early stages" regarding its involvement in the bid, the paper said, citing a source close to the sale process.

The sale process could fetch 1.5 billion to 2 billion pounds ($2.34 billion to $3.12 billion) according to the paper.

An ADIA spokesman declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.
The sale of the 110-km High Speed 1 (HS1) line, which links central London to the Channel Tunnel, will be the first major British transport infrastructure sale since airport operator BAA sold London’s Gatwick airport late last year.

ADIA bought a 15 percent stake in Gatwick Airport earlier this year.
Britain began the sale of the rights to operate the country’s only high-speed railway in June, helping raise much-needed funds for the public purse.

Other bidders include Channel tunnel operator Groupe Eurotunnel which is working on a bid with Goldman Sachs Infrastructure Partners, its biggest shareholder, and with Infracapital, the infrastructure arm of Prudential unit M&G, another big shareholder.

 

Share This Article
By Reuters
Follow:
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms.