The controlling shareholders of Portuguese parking operator Empark have instructed JP Morgan to find a buyer for the company, in a deal which could fetch around €850 mln.
Empark currently owns around 500,000 car park spaces, mostly in Spain and Portugal, but also in the UK, Turkey, Andorra and Poland.
Its dominant shareholders are Portuguese investors Silva & Silva, which owns 78% of the company, and Chinese conglomerate Haitong, which owns a 14% stake.
In 2015, a deal with French car parks group Vinci Park fell through after the potential buyer said it was concerned about Empark's exposure to town hall car parks, which risked being returned to the public sector. Ardian, part-owners of Vinci Park (now called Indigo), are reported to be no longer interested in striking a deal for Empark. Indigo was put on the market earlier this year for close to €300 mln.
Empark's leading shareholders are understood to be pushing for a deal with a third party which would oblige the other shareholders to sell, according to the company's shareholder agreements.
Last year, Empark recorded a profit of €65 mln and restructured debt to the tune of €475 mln.
News of the potential sale came as US private equity firm KKR was reported to be acquiring European car park provider Q-Park for over €2 bn. Reuters broke the news that KKR had emerged ahead of four other parties in a bidding war for Q-Park, which is based in the Dutch city of Maastricht. The company operates 870,000 parking spaces in 10 European countries, and is the largest car park group in the Benelux.
