IFM has bought a stake in Vienna’s airport after its offer for shares was accepted by shareholders.
The Australian investment manager has taken a 29.9% stake in the infrastructure asset, buying the stake through Airports Group Europe, the indirect subsidiary of its open-ended Global Infrastructure Fund.
“We received considerable interest from investors, and feel reassured that we made a fair and attractive offer”, Werner Kerschl, investment director of IFM Investors. “We believe that Austria and Vienna Airport in particular, represent an especially attractive investment opportunity.”
As well as airports, IFM Investors has invested in pipelines, electricity transmission systems and seaports.
The infrastructure sector has seen several European airport deals in recent months.
In October, Ferrovial, through its subsidiary Ferrovial Aeropuertos subsidiary, and Macquarie European Infrastructure agreed to pay £1.04bn for three UK airports.
Macquarie’s Fund 4 and Ferrovial are buying Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports from Heathrow Airport Holdings. The three airports will continue to be managed locally.
The deal followed Macquarie’s sale of its 50% stake in Bristol airport to Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, which had a 49% stake.
