Qube could be ready for its next big acquisition and the thinking among some market experts is that it could look across the Tasman to do so.
There’s been chatter that the logistics business has had its executives looking at the Port of Tauranga and Auckland port with a view of potentially taking a stake.
The ports are not currently up for sale, but Auckland Council, which owns the port, is strapped for cash, and it’s not inconceivable that it is a seller of an interest.
The logistics firm has a sizeable presence in the New Zealand market, where it purchased the ISO stevedoring and marshalling company in 2014, operating in seven ports, and a 50 per cent stake in Pinnacle last year.
Pinnacle owns port-based and stand-alone facilities in nine locations in New Zealand operating under the Specialised Group brand.
Qube is in a position to buy assets, with its low debt-to-equity ratio. For the six months to December, Qube generated a 7.9 per cent increase in its underlying net profit to $134.8m.
Its net debt is $1.3bn and its market value is $5.9bn.
In the past, its interest has been a possible buyer of a stake in Brookfield’s Patrick Terminals business when the private equity firm is ready to offload the interest in the $2bn-plus stake.
Patrick, a seaport operator with operations in Brisbane, Fremantle, Melbourne and Sydney, was previously listed on the ASX.
Qube has the pre-emptive right to buy the remaining half in Patrick that it does not already own.
Elsewhere, Canadian gold miner Equinox Gold has paid $C995m ($1.1bn) for Orion’s 40 per cent interest in the Greenstone Gold Mine process in Canada.
Australia’s Gold Road Resources dropped out of the contest when it was unable to compete on price, and Equinox had pre-emptive rights to buy the assets. Orion was advised on the sale by RBC.