Overview

Attero is the leading operator in the Dutch waste treatment and recycling market. It owns two of the largest and most efficient energy-from-waste plants in Western Europe, anaerobic digestion plants for biomethane production, composting facilities, mineral recycling and depository locations, post-separation installations and plastic recycling capacity that recycles up to 25,000 tonnes of used plastic per year into high-quality granulates. Attero processes c.3.6 million tonnes of waste every year, producing c.900 gigawatt-hours of electricity powering c.363,000 households, c.25 million cubic metres of green gas, c.318,000 tonnes of compost and more than c.700,000 tonnes of other recycled materials.

3i Infrastructure acquired its interest in Attero in 2018, alongside co-investor DWS. In November 2023, Ardian Infrastructure purchased 100% of Attero from 3i Infrastructure and its co-investors (funds managed by DWS (c.50%), and other funds managed by 3i Investments plc (c.25%)), generating net proceeds of €215 million for 3i Infrastructure’s 25% stake, a 23% net IRR and 2.7x net money multiple.

Highlights

• Substantial growth since initial investment: EBITDA almost doubled since 2018
• Invested into a new 120MW turbine, capable of producing enough electricity in one hour to power a household for 25 years
• Invested in a new, market-leading plastics recycling plant that can recycle 25,000 tonnes of used plastic every year
• Invested in the renovation of composting sites to deliver c.20 million m3 of biogas and biomethane per year
• Supported Attero in installing and financing solar farms on closed landfill sites
• Supported Attero to diversify its sources of waste imports
• Advised Attero on its debt refinancing into long-term, investment grade, portable debt before the interest rate cycle turned

Regulatory information 
This transaction involved a recommendation of 3i Investments plc.

Overview

Anglian Water (‘AWG’) is the supplier of water and water recycling services to over six million domestic and business customers in the east of England and Hartlepool.

3i Infrastructure acquired its stake in AWG in 2007. Since then, AWG has invested over £4 billion to replace ageing infrastructure, improve resilience and address the imbalance between supply and demand in one of the UK’s driest regions. Through its innovative Love Every Drop strategy, AWG has reduced service interruptions, pollution incidents and leakage to record low levels.

In December 2017, 3i Infrastructure sold its stake in AWG to a consortium of Dalmore Capital and GLIL Infrastructure (the infrastructure investment joint venture between five local Government pension funds), generating gross proceeds of approx. £395 million.

Highlights

• Invested over £4 billion to replace ageing infrastructure, improve resilience and address supply and demand imbalance in one of the UK’s driest regions
• AWG’s commitment to responsible development was recognised when it was named Responsible Business of the Year 2017 by Business in the Community
• For the financial year to March 2016, AWG ranked second among the Water and Sewerage Companies in Ofwat’s Customer Service Survey
• AWG was ranked second in Glassdoor's list of the top 20 best places to work in the UK in December 2017

Regulatory information 
This transaction involved a recommendation of 3i Investments plc.

Overview

Elenia is the owner and operator of the second largest electricity distribution business in Finland and a complementary district heating business. The company’s electricity distribution network is c 69,000 km in length and serves c 420,000 residential, industrial and business customers, with a market share of approximately 12%. Elenia Heat owns and operates 16 local district heating networks across Finland with a total network length of almost 500 km serving c 85,000 end-users.

3i Infrastructure acquired its interest in Elenia in January 2012 as part of a consortium with GS Infrastructure Partners and Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company.

In December 2017, 3i Infrastructure sold its stake in Elenia to a consortium comprising Allianz, Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets and Valtion Eläkerahasto, the State Pension Fund of Finland, generating gross proceeds of approximately £725 million.

Highlights

• Rebranded the business and strengthened the management team
• Invested over €600m to improve reliability of electricity supply for customers
• Increased underground cabling rate from 23% at the beginning of 2012 to 40% in 2017
• Reduced customer outages by over 10 hours per year
• Refinanced the business increasing flexibility to fund future capex requirements
• Invested in leading digital network management and ‘smart’ customer usage and outage monitoring

Regulatory information 
This transaction involved a recommendation of 3i Investments plc.

Overview

Eversholt Rail Group (‘Eversholt’) is one of the three leading rolling stock leasing companies in the UK. 3i Infrastructure acquired its 33% interest in Eversholt in December 2010 as part of a consortium with Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners and STAR Capital Partners, who each also held 33% stakes. The consortium acquired 100% of Eversholt’s share capital from HSBC, where the business had been run as a leasing sub-division of the bank and was formerly known as HSBC Rail.

Over a period of four years, 3i Infrastructure and our consortium partners worked closely with the management team to establish Eversholt as a successful independent company, supporting the business in its re-franchising programme and in assessing a range of capital investment opportunities in its existing fleet and new build trains. The shareholders helped to optimise the company’s capital structure, through the issuance of long-term bonds, institutional private placements and bank finance.

In January 2015, 3i Infrastructure sold its stake in Eversholt to CK Investments S.A R.L., generating net proceeds of £365 million.

Highlights

• Worked closely with the management team to establish Eversholt as a successful independent company
• Supported the business in its re-franchising programme
• Assessed a range of capital investment opportunities, both to add further trains to the overall fleet and to invest in upgrading existing assets to provide a better passenger experience and improved reliability, at good value for money for customers
• Optimised the company’s capital structure through the issuance of three long-dated public bonds and a private placement
• Established asset management business to manage trains from other rolling stock providers, including Thameslink
• Strengthened the company’s governance through several appointments to the board, including a new chair, a highly experienced non-executive director, a CFO and COO

Regulatory information 
This transaction involved a recommendation of 3i Investments plc.

Overview

Oystercatcher is the holding company through which 3i Infrastructure held 45% interests in four subsidiaries of Oiltanking, located in Belgium, Malta and the Netherlands.

These businesses provide over three million cubic metres of oil, petroleum and other oil-related storage facilities and associated services to a broad range of clients, including private and state oil companies, refiners, petrochemical companies and traders.

Oiltanking is one of the world’s leading independent storage partners for oils, chemicals and gases, operating 41 terminals in 18 countries with a total storage capacity of 16 million cubic metres.

Follow-on investments

On 2 May 2017, Oiltanking Ghent acquired 100% of Belgotank NV, a company which owns 82,000 cubic metres of tank capacity located on the Oiltanking Ghent site. These provide a mix of small tanks which are complementary to the business’s existing tank portfolio. On 25 September 2017, Oystercatcher made a follow-on equity investment of €2.4 million into Oiltanking Ghent to part fund that acquisition.

Recent developments

Oystercatcher, in line with the broader oil storage sector, has benefitted from a contango market structure for oil-derived products during the year and overall performed ahead of our expectations. Storage rates have improved and many existing customers have been keen to renew storage contracts early. At the same time, customer activity levels have reduced due to lower end-user demand, caused by the Covid-related lockdown measures around the world, and this has negatively impacted throughput and ancillary services revenues.

Regulatory information 
This transaction involved a recommendation of 3i Investments plc.

Overview

WIG is the UK's second largest independent tower company and, during our ownership, the largest to focus solely on telecom towers. It operates over 2,000 towers and other wireless infrastructure assets, representing 7% of the UK market.

WIG builds and operates communications towers in rural and suburban areas, together with neutral host networks to enable mobile coverage in buildings and on city streets.  WIG is an independent operator and invests in high capacity infrastructure that is made available to all networks.

3i Infrastructure invested £75 million to acquire a minority interest in WIG in April 2016 to support the growth of the business. In January 2018, 3i Infrastructure invested a further £187 million to increase its equity ownership to 93%. 

In December 2019, 3i Infrastructure completed the sale of its 93% stake in WIG to Brookfield Infrastructure, generating proceeds of £387 million, a 27% gross IRR and a 1.7x gross money multiple.

Highlights

• Supported the building of new towers
• Supported the company's acquisition of a portfolio of towers in Ireland, taking WIG's portfolio to almost 2,100 assets across the UK, Netherlands and Ireland
• Expanded indoor networks in some of the UK's highest footfall buildings such as MediaCity, the Trafford Centre, Lords Cricket Ground and Anfield Football Stadium 
• Supported the acquisition of Arqiva's Indoor Networks business which added 42 networks across the UK
• In September 2017, WIG launched the UK's first 5G-ready, fibre-connected, outdoor small cell network in Aberdeen, working in partnership with Telefonica
• Advised WIG on its debt refinancing which provided long-term institutional capital and a revolving capital expenditure facility

Overview

Cross London Trains ('XLT') is a company established to procure and lease the rolling stock for use on the Thameslink passenger rail franchise.

3i Infrastructure invested £61.8 million in XLT in June 2013, alongside Innisfree PFI Secondary Fund 2 LP and Siemens Project Ventures. XLT was set up to finance and purchase 115 Desiro City Class 700 trains from Siemens plc and lease them to the Operator of the Thameslink rail franchise, currently Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR).

The Class 700 trains are amongst the most modern and most efficient trains in the UK. Their new generation software enabled design gives the ability to intelligently monitor maintenance, improving reliability. Automatic train operation technology will allow them to run 24 trains per hour, in both directions, through the London core.

In March 2019, 3i Infrastructure sold its 33.3% stake in XLT to a consortium of Dalmore and Equitix funds generating proceeds of c. £333 million.

Highlights

• The fleet was delivered on time and on budget in June 2018 and is now fully operational
• The Class 700 train won “Train of the Year” at the National Rail Awards 2018
• The fleet now represents a key element of London’s commuter rail infrastructure

Regulatory information 
This transaction involved a recommendation of 3i Investments plc.