Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan has reduced its holdings in two UK airports through a partnership with Australia’s New South Wales Treasury Corporation (TCorp) and Sunsuper Superannuation Fund.
The Canadian pension fund said it has agreed a deal whereby TCorp and Sunsuper will each buy 15% of its stakes in Bristol Airport and Birmingham Airport.
Following the sale, Ontario Teachers’ interest in Bristol Airport will drop from 100% to 70%, while its 48.25% holding in Birmingham Airport will be reduced to 33.8%.
Andrew Claerhout, senior managing director of infrastructure and natural resources at Ontario Teachers, said: “Working with like-minded partners who bring new ideas, capital and expertise to the table is core to our broader investment strategy.”
Ontario Teachers is the largest private investor in airports in Europe and has holdings in Copenhagen Airports, Brussels Airport and London City Airport.
The pension fund has been an investor in Bristol and Birmingham Airports since 2001, increasing its stakes to 100% in Bristol and 48.25% in Birmingham in 2014, with the intention of bringing in new partners.
The investment provides Sunsuper, which it already has investments in Australian airports, with its first exposure to the UK market.
Michael Weaver, head of private markets at Sunsuper, said the superannuatin fund “is an experienced investor in the Australian airport sector, and we are excited to expand our existing portfolio by adding stakes in two high quality UK airports in Bristol and Birmingham”.
Stewart Brentnall, CIO at TCorp, said the Australian investor was ”particularly interested in this investment because of the opportunity to partner with Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Sunsuper, both experienced and like-minded global infrastructure investors”.
