Deal in Focus: Ardian backs €1.96bn Vinci Park buyout

Should the deal go ahead following consultations with the company's works councils and France's regulation authority, it would become the largest French buyout since the €2.1bn acquisition of SPIE in June 2011.

Ardian will hold a 37.5% stake in the newco, while Crédit Agricole Assurances will secure a similar holding via its personal insurance arm Predica. Vinci will retain a 25% stake via its Vinci Concessions unit, the division under which Vinci Park currently operates.

Ardian will invest via its Axa Infrastructure III vehicle, which closed on €1.5bn at the beginning of last year. LPs in the fund might eventually be invited to directly co-invest in the transaction. Ardian anticipates a holding period of around 10 years - longer than a vanilla private equity transaction but relatively short compared with usual infrastructure investments - according to Ardian managing director Laurent Fayollas.

Vinci had been looking to partly divest its car park activities to better focus on airport concession opportunities. The transaction took between 9-12 months to materialise, with Ardian being able to capitalise on its existing relationship with Vinci: the two companies have partnered on two occasions before, including the Tours-Bordeaux high-speed rail project. "We are always looking to develop strong partnerships with our infrastructure investments," explains Fayollas. "We know Vinci well given our previous collaborations, and we were therefore able to become involved very early in the selling process."

The GP was drawn to Vinci Park given its strong position in the French market. The company's focus on long-term concessions translates to good long-term visibility on cashflows, says Fayollas. "At around 30%, Vinci Park's EBITDA margin also compares very favourably with other players in this sector," he adds.

The company will aim to further develop its business in France, but Ardian sees strong growth opportunities in international markets such as Latin America and Asia, where rapid urbanisation and increased car usage bode well for car park operators. In more established markets, the potential for consolidation is also thought to be significant – with possible targets being players struggling to shoulder heavy debt burdens following LBOs made during the boom years.

All-senior
Given Vinci Park's substantial margins, the proposed financing structure remains sensible: a seven-strong banking syndicate (comprising Crédit Agricole CIB, RBS, HSH Nordbank, Santander, BBVA, BNP Paribas and SMBC) will provide new investment-grade senior facilities totalling €900m, while €140m of existing debt will be rolled over.

Rumours of a future bond refinancing have done the rounds - nothing seems set in stone however, with Fayollas stating that Ardian will look to be flexible when it comes to financing future bolt-on opportunities, while remaining conservative with regards to overall leverage levels.

Vinci Park was established in 2001. The division manages around 1.6 million parking spaces and associated services in 500 towns and cities across 14 countries. It generates revenues of around €700m and employs 12,000 staff.

People
Ardian – Mathias Burghardt, Laurent Fayollas

Advisers
Equity – Crédit Agricole (M&A); Nomura (M&A); Accuracy (Financial due diligence); Roland Berger (Commercial due diligence); Freshfields (Legal); BDGS (Legal).

This deal was originally covered on 12 February 2014

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• Infrastructure
• France
• France
• Ardian (formerly Axa PE)