Ares Management Corporation has agreed to acquire North American railcar and intermodal equipment lessor Infinity Transportation from KKR in a deal valuing the business at an enterprise value of $2.9bn (€2.6bn).
Ares, which is investing through its infrastructure equity and insurance solutions funds, will acquire a fleet of approximately 50,000 railcars leased to more than 350 clients across the US, Canada and Mexico.
Global Atlantic, a subsidiary of KKR, has backed Infinity since 2016, supporting its transition to a standalone operating platform and expanding its fleet book value.
Daniel Pietrzak, partner and head of asset-backed finance (ABF) at KKR, said: “Infinity is a great example of KKR’s ability to scale ABF platforms into industry leaders and accelerate their long-term growth. This transaction demonstrates the value that can be created when you combine long-term patient capital with strong partnership and deep expertise.
“We are proud of what we have built together over the past decade and are confident that Ares will be an exceptional partner to Infinity going forward.”
Mike Roth, partner in Ares infrastructure equity, and Anup Agarwal, head and CIO of Ares Insurance Solutions, said: “Infinity’s railcar portfolio is a critical component of the US transportation and logistics supply chain, and we are pleased to build on our expanding activity in the sector through this transaction.
“Transportation and logistics assets continue benefiting from the reshoring of manufacturing, increased investment in domestic industrial capacity and growing need for more resilient supply chains. Alongside this strong underlying demand, Infinity’s high-quality, long-lived assets are well suited for long-term investment.”
Jeff Edelman, president and CEO of Infinity, said: “We appreciate KKR’s partnership and support, which enabled us to invest in the team, expand our fleet and build Infinity into the industry leader it is today.
“We’re proud of what we’ve achieved to date and are excited to begin a new chapter with Ares, whose scale and experience will support our continued growth.”
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