An Asian party is being tipped as the most likely buyer of Quadrant Private Equity’s Journey Beyond business when it comes up for sale next year, but NRMA is expected to be close to the action.
The National Roads and Motorists Association is understood to have an appetite for rail assets, which would make Journey Beyond’s Great Southern Rail operation — including The Ghan and The Indian Pacific rail experience — attractive. However, the thinking is the NRMA would shy away from Journey Beyond’s marine and Melbourne-based Eureka skydeck assets.
Working on the sale of the business is investment bank Jefferies.
The Ghan runs between Adelaide and Darwin and is popular among tourists.
The sale comes at a time when tourism is performing relatively well due to the low dollar.
Journey Beyond was formed when Quadrant bought Great Southern Rail and later the Cruise Whitsundays and Rottnest Express marine tourism businesses. The business is thought to generate about $40m of annual earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation and could fetch a price of at least $400m.
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