Deals

GIP joins Montagu in £1.2bn waste services bid

UK mid-market buyout firm HgCapital leaving the bidding for Biffa has created a gap for Global Infrastructure Partners to team up with Montagu Private Equity, which had signed a non-solicitation agreement alongside Hg with the UK waste services company’s board.

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HgCapital has dropped out of the bidding for waste services company Biffa, although its partner UK mid-market buyout firm Montagu Private Equity will continue to consider a bid alongside Global Infrastructure Partners, according to someone close to the deal.

Montagu and Hg had been considering a bid at £3.50 per share ($6.90 per share; €4.70 per share) or £1.23 billion for Biffa, having entered due diligence with the waste services company in December. 

Global Infrastructure Partners and Montagu will now decide whether to bid during the coming weeks, the source said. The non-solicitation agreement signed by Montagu and HgCapital with Biffa will now transfer to GIP, he said.

Global Infrastructure Partners is a specialist infrastructure firm with cornerstone investments from US bank Credit Suisse and US conglomerate General Electric.

It bought London City Airport for €750 million ($1.1 billion) in a joint venture with US insurer AIG in 2006.