Chile toll road deal for CPPIB

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has strengthened its profile in Chile with the purchase of a 49.99 percent stake in Grupo Costanera, a major toll road operator in Santiago.

CPPIB paid Atlantia Group CLP560 billion ($1.15 billion) for the concern, the $154 billion pension fund manager said in a press statement.

It called the acquisition “an excellent opportunity to expand our infrastructure portfolio in a developing market,” crediting Chile with “strong economic growth…and stable legal and regulatory framework”.

The purchase gave CPPIB a 188-kilometre toll road network in Chile, mostly in urban Santiago. Atlantia Group, a toll road company from Italy, will retain a 50.01 percent interest in Grupo Costanera.

Fast-developing Chile has become a popular market for direct investment in infrastructure.

In December, the C$69 billion Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) bought 50 percent of SAESA Group, a Santiago-based electricity distribution and transmission company, from Morgan Stanley Infrastructure.

Brookfield Asset Management, a $150 billion alternative asset manager, acquired in September a 50 percent stake in Tunel San Cristobal and its 46.5 percent holding in Vespucio Norte – both in Chile – from ACS for $285 million.

CPPIB has an C$8.6 billion infrastructure portfolio, representing 5.6 percent of its asset base.