Ardian exits CLH

The deal was valued at around €500m and the total valuation of CLH could reach €5bn excluding debt, according to press reports.

APG and WSIB, which already owned a 5% stake each in CLH, will hold 10% each after the transaction. Other shareholders will retain their stakes in the company, with CVC Capital Partners controlling 25%, Canadian firm Omers Infrastructure with 24.8%, Australian investor Macquarie with 20% and Crédit Agricole 10%.

Previous funding
Ardian, at the time known as Axa Private Equity, acquired a 10% stake in CLH in February 2011 from Spanish service-station operator DISA, in a deal that valued the company at €3.6bn. Spanish oil company CEPSA remained the largest single investor in the company with a 14.15% stake, while Repsol and Oman Oil retained 10% each. The remaining minority shareholders included Novacaixagalicia, BP, Galp, BBK, Deutsche Bank, PSP, PGGM and AIMCO.

Ardian increased its stake in the business by acquiring an additional 5% in December 2013 from CEPSA. Subsequently, the French GP bought a 10% stake from Repsol for €325m in September 2015, reaching a total ownership of 25%.

In January 2016, Canadian firm Omers Infrastructure, known at the time as Borealis Infrastructure, bought the remaining 9.15% stake owned by CEPSA and an additional 15% stake from Global Infrastructure Partners reaching a 24.15% holding.

CVC bought a 25% stake in CLH in April 2017 by deploying capital from its Strategic Opportunities fund. The deal saw Ardian sell 10% of its stake alongside Spanish lenders Kutxabank and Abanca, which both sold their 5% stakes, and Canadian institutional investor Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMC), which also sold a 5% stake.

In May 2017, Macquarie, via its MEI Fund 5, acquired a 20% stake in CLH from AMP Capital and Oman Oil Company SAOC.

After the conclusion of the two deals, the company's shareholder base included CVC, with a 25% stake; Canadian investor Omers, known at the time as Borealis Infrastructure with a 24.8% stake; Ardian, with a 15% stake; and Macquarie with a 20% stake. Meanwhile, Oman Oil, Kutaxabank, Abanca and AIMC fully exited their investments.

In June 2017, Ardian sold another 5% stake in the company to Crédit Agricole, reducing its holding in CLH to 10%.

Company
CLH specialises in logistics, transportation and storage of petrol and diesel. The company was established in 1992 as a spin-out from Spanish state-owned oil company Compañía Arrendataria del Monopolio del Petróleo (Campsa), which was dissolved following the demands of the European Economic Community.

CLH is composed of CLH, CLH Aviación and Terquimsa, which operate in Spain; CLH Pipeline System in the UK; CLH Aviation Ireland in Ireland; Orpic Logistics Company in Oman; and CLH Panama. The group provides logistics, transportation by pipeline, storage and dispatch of oil, diesel, petrol and biofuel.

CLH employs 1,400 staff and operates 6,000 kilometres of pipelines, 54 storage facilities and 34 airport facilities, with more than nine million cubic metres of capacity. CLH recorded EBITDA of €400.4m in 2017 and profit after tax of €233.6m.

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• Topics
• Exits
• Southern Europe
• Infrastructure
• Ardian (formerly Axa PE)
• Spain
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