Dexus is believed to be positioning itself for another attempt to take control of one of Australia’s airport assets after missing out on Gold Coast airport owner Queensland Airports.
DataRoom understands that Dexus will be among the suitors lining up for North Queensland Airports Group, which owns Cairns and Mackay Airports and the Mackay Airport Hotel.
However, suitors are expected to be deterred by the asset’s $3bn price tag, with some calling the offering as overpriced.
North Queensland Airports is more expensive than Perth Airport – the subject of a recent transaction – and Queensland Airports from an earnings multiple perspective.
Just over 74 per cent of the latter was recently sold to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Skip Capital for about $3bn.
The whole North Queensland Airports business is up for sale through Macquarie Capital.
Other suitors expected to take a look are Stonepeak and French investor Vinci.
The asset will be too large for Palisade Investment Partners, which earlier weighed an acquisition of Queensland Airports, and GIP would likely shy away from the price.
AustralianSuper may be in the mix, as could be Amsterdam Airport, which has purchased assets in Australia in the past.
The Infrastructure Fund owns 27 per cent of North Queensland.
There are no government restrictions on foreign investors taking ownership.
A JPMorgan Asset Management-controlled fund owns 66 per cent, while the other owner is Perron with 7 per cent.
In 2018, Auckland International Airport offloaded its 24.6 per cent stake to Perron and The Infrastructure Fund for $370m.
Cairns Airport says that before the pandemic it had more than five million passengers per year. The sales pitch is the opportunity to transform Cairns into an international destination with international flights from further afield.
Zenith Energy
Before Pacific Equity Partners and OPTrust starts a process that could result in a sale of all or part of the $2bn Zenith Energy business, the owners are trying to get the company’s financing in order. The understanding is that PEP and OPTrust are working to refinance about $600m to $700m of debt.
Zenith Energy provides contracted power to miners in remote locations and is understood to generate well over $120m of annual EBITDA.
PEP purchased Zenith Energy in 2020 for $250m including debt, or about $150m equity.
It also refinanced last year, adding a new $320m tranche to its existing $440m syndicated facilities that were established in October 2022.
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