At least two high-profile consortia including two large pension funds are set to compete for the UK water assets of French firm Veolia Environnement.
A team of AXA Private Equity, Infracapital Partners – infrastructure fund of M&G Investments – and the South Korean National Pension Service will vie with a consortium of Goldman Sachs Infrastructure Partners, UK pension Universities Superannuation Scheme and CVC Capital Partners for Veolia’s UK water assets, valued at around £1billion.
It is unclear whether Japan’s Marubeni Corporation is also in the picture after being mentioned in the media.
None of the parties have been available for comment.
The South Korean National Pension Service - the world’s fourth-largest pension fund, managing $320billion of assets – has recently announced that it will open a London office in June, fuelling the speculation that it will bid for Veolia UK's assets, which include Veolia Water Central, Veolia Water East and Veolia Water Southeast.
Its presence in the Veolia deal demonstrates the growing interest of Asian investors in the UK water sector, after news that Chinese investors are interested in buying into Thames Water’s Tideway Tunnel project.
Earlier in the year, China Investment Corporation bought an 8.7 per cent stake in Thames Water for an undisclosed sum.
It certainly seems that Chancellor George Osborne has been granted his wish of Asian investment in the UK water sector - and infrastructure in general - following his visit to the continent in January.
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