Oaktree to Sell Port Network to CPPIB at $4 Billion Valuation

(Bloomberg) -- Canada Pension Plan Investment Board struck a deal to buy full control of Ports America, the largest U.S. terminal operator, from Oaktree Capital Management.

The deal, which gives Canada’s largest pension fund 100% ownership, values the business at about $4 billion including debt, according to a person familiar with the matter. Oaktree had been exploring the sale at a valuation of $5 billion to $6 billion, people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg in April. 

“Ports America represents the opportunity to continue to invest in a high-quality operator that plays an important role in global trade, making the company a good fit for our long-term infrastructure investment strategy,” Scott Lawrence, head of infrastructure at CPPIB, said in a statement. The fund currently owns just less than 10% of the company. 

Jersey City, New Jersey-based Ports America, led by Chief Executive Officer Mark Montgomery, operates 33 U.S. ports in cities including Los Angeles, Miami and Freeport, Texas. The company handles 2.5 million vehicles, 10 million tons of general cargo and 1.7 million cruise passengers annually. 

Oaktree’s infrastructure arm inherited Ports America with the firm’s 2014 purchase of Highstar Capital, which owned the business through a fund raised in 2007. Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management Inc. bought a majority stake in Oaktree in 2019.

The transaction is subject to closing conditions and regulatory requirements and is expected to close by the fourth quarter, according to the statement.

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