10th Oct 2007 07:01
HSBC Infrastructure Company Limited10 October 2007 10 October 2007 HICL Buys Stakes in Five Education Projects and HSE's Merseyside Headquarters HSBC Infrastructure Company Limited ("HICL"), the listed infrastructureinvestment company, announces today it has completed the acquisition for £30.2million of 50% interests, in five education projects and the Health and SafetyExecutive's Merseyside headquarters, through a new joint venture with KajimaPartnerships Ltd ("KPL"), a subsidiary of Kajima Corporation ("Kajima"). The acquisition of equity and loan notes is payable in cash from existingresources and debt facilities. It takes the number of projects in HICL'sportfolio to 27. These six assets, all Private Finance Initiative ("PFI") accommodation projectsare: •The headquarters of the Health & Safety Executive ("HSE") in Merseyside •Ealing Schools, comprising one secondary school and three primary schools •North Tyneside Schools, comprising one secondary school and three primary schools •Wooldale Centre for Learning, comprising a secondary school with sixth form, public library, primary school and nursery •Haverstock school, a new secondary school in London •Darlington Schools consisting of an Education Village and one primary school All six projects were developed by KPL and built by Kajima Construction Europe,Kajima's construction arm, and are now operational. The facilities managementproviders are Honeywell Control Systems Ltd and Reliance Integrated ServicesLimited for HSE's headquarters, and MITIE PFI Ltd for the five schools. KPL will continue the day-to-day management of these projects and there is theopportunity for HICL to invest, through this joint venture, in other projectsdeveloped by KPL. Tony Roper, Director, HSBC Specialist Fund Management Limited, HICL's InvestmentAdviser, said: "I am pleased to have acquired these six project interests fromKPL. They are high quality assets with a good operational track record. Theycomplement well the existing investments in the HICL portfolio, and we lookforward to working with KPL to ensure they are well managed and successful." Julian Rudd-Jones, Director, Kajima Partnerships Limited, said: "We aredelighted to have concluded this joint venture transaction with HICL. We lookforward to a successful relationship and the opportunity it gives us and ourpartners to grow the business further." Ends M:Communications +44 (0)20 7153 1523Ed Orlebar HSBC Infrastructure Company Limited The Company is a long term investor in infrastructure projects which arepredominantly in their operating phase and yielding steady returns. It was thefirst infrastructure investment company to be listed on the London StockExchange. Following this acquisition, it owns a portfolio of 27 infrastructureprojects, mostly operational, and seeks to acquire further investmentopportunities. The Investment Adviser to the Company is HSBC Specialist Fund ManagementLimited, whose infrastructure investment team has successfully invested ininfrastructure projects since 1997 and which is part of HSBC SpecialistInvestments, the infrastructure and real estate investment arm of the HSBCGroup. Kajima Corporation Kajima Corporation is an industry leader in the field of construction and hasextensive expertise in the development, design and construction of a widevariety of sizeable infrastructure projects. Generating annual consolidatedsales in excess of $16 billion (as at 31 March 2007), Kajima Corporation ranksas one of the top construction entities in the world. Kajima Corporationcurrently maintains a workforce of approximately 9,100 employees at itsheadquarters in Tokyo, at its 12 domestic branches and at numerous sales/projectoffices throughout Japan. Its global operations network spans more than 20countries in Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the United States. KPL was created specifically to provide Kajima with a vehicle for itsinvolvement in the UK PFI/PPP market. KPL has utilised, and continues toexploit, its procurement skills to obtain positions as project sponsor andproject manager on a diverse portfolio of projects. Key sectors in which KPL hasbeen involved include government offices, education, health, civic facilitiesand emergency services (e.g. fire, police and rescue). Kajima is biddingcurrently for a number of PFI projects in the UK and is committed toconsolidating its position across its core sectors of education, health andaccommodation. The Portfolio •The Ealing Schools PFI project is a four-school education PFI project consisting of one secondary school (Brentside) and three primary schools(Downe Manor, Gifford and Ravenor) in the London Borough of Ealing. The schoolsbecame operational in 2004. The contract has a 27-year operational term thatexpires in 2031. •The North Tyneside Schools PFI project is a four-school education PFI project consisting of one secondary school (Burnside) and three primary schools (Western, Marine, Coquet) in North Tyneside. The schools became operational in 2003/2004. The contract has a 30-year operational team that expires in 2034. •The Wooldale Centre for Learning is an education PFI project consisting of a Centre for Learning (CfL) comprising a secondary school with sixth form, public library, primary school and nursery on a large site in Northamptonshire. The first phase of the CfL (the primary school, library and part of the secondary school) became operational in 2004. The contract has a 25-year operational term that expires in 2029. The Centre is intended to provide a community hub and a lifelong learning resource centre. The greenfield site adjoins a large area of new residential development to the south of Northampton city centre. •The headquarters of the Health & Safety Executive ("HSE") in Merseyside is a four-storey office building that serves and houses 1,500 employees. The building became operational in 2005. The contract has a 30-year operational term that expires in 2035. It is part of a long-term redevelopment effort supported by the local authorities. •The Haverstock school PFI project is a single school education PFI project consisting of a new secondary school on an existing school site on Haverstock Hill, Camden. Phase 1 of the new school became operational in 2004 with subsequent phases handed over one year later. The contract has a 26-year operational term that expires in 2030. •The Darlington Schools PFI project is a four-school education PFI project consisting of an Education Village and one primary school. The facilities became available on a phased basis in 2005 and 2006. The contract has a 25-year operational term that expires in 2030. The Education Village represents the consolidation of Springfield Primary School, Haughton Community School and Beaumont Hill Special School. It successfully combines existing nursery, primary, secondary and special education needs into a single cohesive campus developing a unique approach to inclusive education in Darlington. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
HICL Infrastructure