KKR & Co has agreed to buy John Laing Group PLC for about ￡2 billion (US$2.8 billion), partnering with another investor to secure a global infrastructure portfolio with potential for further growth.
The US private-equity giant yesterday said that it would pay ￡4.03 a share for John Laing, sending the stock to its highest level since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The offer represents a 27 percent premium over the London-based target’s share price before the talks were disclosed on May 6.
Photo: Reuters
John Laing invests in and manages transportation, social and environmental infrastructure projects, according to its Web site.
KKR said the company offers an attractive pipeline of future projects and represents a platform for building out its own infrastructure strategy.
John Laing management is to stay in place and benefit from the buyout firm’s access to capital, while infrastructure investor Equitix is to pitch in to buy a 50 percent stake in the existing asset portfolio once the acquisition is completed.
The 173-year-old group sold off its construction division in 2001 and has since focused solely on infrastructure assets for government entities.
The company has been awarded business under public-private partnership programs in the UK, Europe, Asia, Latin America and North America.
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