Qube is poised to follow other major Australian infrastructure assets — including Sydney Airport — into private ownership after agreeing to an $11.7 billion sale to Macquarie Asset Management (MAM), the specialised asset management division of the broader MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED (ASX:MQG).
The deal remains subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals and comes almost three months after MAM lodged a non-binding, $5.20-a-share cash proposal, conditional on due diligence.
Qube’s board said at the time it would support the bid if it was formalised. On Monday, it confirmed it had entered a scheme implementation deed with MAM at the same price.
MAM has secured investment commitments from Zara founder Amancio Ortega’s family office, Pontegadea, alongside Brighter Super, Mercer and existing Qube investor UniSuper. UniSuper said it would retain its 15.07% stake in the unlisted entity if the deal proceeds and intends to vote in favour.
If completed, the acquisition would be MAM’s largest Australian infrastructure investment, surpassing its $7.6 billion purchase of electricity distributor Endeavour Energy in 2017. In its quarterly update last week, Macquarie reported $736.1 billion in assets under management as at December 31, including $326 billion across Australia and New Zealand.