Abertis acquires from Santander stakes in Chilean toll roads
Abertis has reached agreement with Santander Group to acquire Infraestructuras Americanas, company owner of 42.3% of Inversora de Infraestructuras S.L. (Invin) for €291 million, payable in August 2019. The acquired company will include non-recourse debt of €162 million maturing in December 2018, unconnected to Santander Group.
This acquisition, which is expected to be completed in the second half of 2014, gives Abertis direct and indirect control of 100% of Rutas del Pacífico and 50% of Autopista Central. These Chilean concessionaires have concession ends on 2024 and 2031 respectively and are forecast to generate EBITDA of €185 million in 2014 (though this transaction doesn't modify the current consolidation methods).
The acquisition of 100% of Invin underlines Abertis' commitment to strengthening its industrial leadership role in the projects in which it is involved and simplifies the structures of its subsidiaries.
The deal also boosts Abertis' commitment to Chile, where it has stakes in six high-capacity roads stretching 700 kilometres and is the largest toll road operator in terms of EBITDA generated.
Chile is Abertis' fourth-largest market by kilometres under management, revenues and EBITDA. At the end of the first quarter, its subsidiary in the country accounted for 6% of total Group EBITDA and 5% of revenues.
The 141-kilometre Rutas del Pacífico - Route 68 - toll road links Santiago de Chile with Valparaíso and Viña del Mar in the country's central region. Autopista Central (which is 60 kilometres in length) is part of the North-South axis of Santiago de Chile. It is the most heavily used urban toll road in the city. Both posted 5% growth in Average Daily Traffic (ADT) in the first quarter of 2014.
Chile is a priority market for Abertis where the company expects to see significant opportunities for growth over the coming years. The company is pursuing public-private partnership deals in Chile with the aim of making further investment in the toll road network in exchange for the extension of the length of existing concessions.
