10 February 2020
Leading independent infrastructure investment manager Whitehelm Capital (“Whitehelm”) today announced first close on its infrastructure debt fund, Whitehelm Capital Infrastructure Debt Partners I (“the Fund”), and attainment of its fundraising target of €500 million across its infrastructure debt platform dedicated to high-yielding investments. The firm expects to hold a final close on the Fund by the summer of 2020.
Whitehelm focuses on debt issued by defensive, non-cyclical infrastructure borrowers in OECD countries, a strategy that has returned more than 9% (USD, hedged, pre-fees) since inception in 2001, without a single default, impairment, restructuring or loss on its debt investments. The debt Fund targets returns of 400bps to 600bps over reference rates with protection against negative rates, with a ten-year life.
Whitehelm has also agreed the first two investments for the investment platform, investing in both a utility and a broadcast infrastructure business. This transaction brings Whitehelm’s investments in infrastructure debt to date to €1.33 billion.
Alexander Waller, Head of Infrastructure Debt, Whitehelm Capital said:
“We are delighted to have the trust and support of our new investors to invest their money in high-quality infrastructure debt assets. We see increasing interest from investors in defensive, yet attractively yielding, strategies with proven track-records and stable, long-standing investment teams, as is the case with our infrastructure debt investment strategy. Through the cycle, we expect high-yielding infrastructure debt to deliver very attractive risk-adjusted returns, providing a rare combination of strong cash returns and insulation against future volatility.”
Alpha Trains is the largest private rolling stock lessor in the passenger and freight markets in Continental Europe, providing over €2.1 billion in rolling stock to both public and private operators. Alpha Trains’ locomotives division comprises Europe’s largest and most diversified fleet of almost 370 diesel and electric locomotives, while the passenger train division comprises 334 diesel and electric trains.
Autovia del Noroeste (Aunor) operates a 62.4km motorway (RM-15) located in Murcia, Spain under a shadow toll regime. The concession for the construction and the operation of the motorway was granted by the Regional Government of Murcia in May 1999 and expires in September 2026. Aunor benefits from robust patronage with traffic currently 158% above the maximum guaranteed average daily traffic, ensuring very stable cashflows. Aunor is owned by Sacyr Concesiones (51%) and Eiser Infrastructure (49%).
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