Private equity firm Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) said it has agreed to buy 25 per cent stake in Chennai Container Terminal Private Ltd (CCT) for an undisclosed sum.
The stake will be acquired through GIP’s International Port Holdings (IPH) portfolio company, a GIP release said.
CCT was built and developed by P&O Ports and is now operated by Dubai Ports World, which holds the remaining 75 per cent interest in it.
The terminal serves the strategically important trade route between Europe and the Far East.
Since its opening in 2001, CCT’s traffic volume has grown at a compounded annual rate of 18.7 per cent, making it the second fastest growing container terminal in the country.
Global Infrastructure management chairman and managing partner Adebayo Ogunlesi said: “We are delighted that one of our first emerging market investments is in such a high- growth, high-quality asset within India’s manufacturing hub.”
“CCT provides a significant opportunity to gain a foothold in one of the most promising areas in the port sector… This investment significantly advances our global strategy of adding well-run port operating assets to GIP’s IPH portfolio,” he added.
GIP did not disclose the financial terms of the transaction and said “the transaction is conditional on obtaining regulatory clearance from the government of India and approval from the Chennai Port Trust”.ÂÂ
