Allianz et al. buy Tank & Rast from Terra Firma

José Rojo
04 August 2015

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Allianz Capital Partners has led a consortium of investors to acquire German motorway services operator Autobahn Tank & Rast, 10 years after selling the business to Terra Firma.

Awaiting approval from the German regulator, the transaction is expected to be finalised during the second half of 2015.

Enterprise value for Tank & Rast has not yet been disclosed, but press reports place it around the €3.5bn mark. Should it be confirmed, the figure would represent a three-fold increase on the price Terra Firma paid 10 years ago.

The consortium of acquirers is led by Allianz Capital Partners, the German insurer's private equity arm, and includes co-investors Borealis Infrastructure Management, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority's Infinity Investments and MEAG.

Tank & Rast will now target growth across its network via the launch of new service areas, the improvement of its existing facilities and the development of new product ranges and partnerships.

The sale marks Allianz's return as Tank & Rast's shareholder more than 10 years after it divested its stake to Terra Firma alongside fellow shareholders Apax Partners and Lufthansa.

The €1.035bn SBO, announced in January 2005, saw Terra Firma deploy around €350m via is €2bn second fund. The transaction put an end to Tank & Rast's IPO plans at the time.

The company was then backed by Terra Firma as it undertook a first refinancing via a hybrid infrastructure loan in 2006, followed by additional restructurings in 2007 and 2013 – the latter understood to amount to €2.1bn in debt.

In 2007, Terra Firma offloaded a 50% shareholding alongside fellow owners to Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management, Deutche Bank's investment arm. According to the GP, the partial sale generated a 5x return, with the final exit upping this multiple further.

Company
Bonn-headquartered Tank & Rast is an operator of service areas across Germany's motorways. The business currently manages 350 petrol stations and approximately 390 service areas in the country, 50 of the latter being hotels. In 2014, the business generated €506m in turnover and an EBITDA of €236m.

People
Allianz's work on the deal was led by CIO Christian Fingerle, while Omers Private Markets CIO Michael Rolland worked on behalf of Borealis Infrastructure Management. MEAG was represented by its managing director Holgen Kerzel. Karl Rolfes is CEO of Tank & Rast.