AIMCo Announces Sale of Autopista Central Toll Road in Chile

EDMONTON, Jan. 21, 2016 /CNW/ - Alberta Investment Management Corporation ("AIMCo") is pleased to announce the successful divestment of its 50% interest in Autopista Central de Chile, a Santiago-based toll road infrastructure asset, on behalf of certain of its clients, to Abertis Infraestructuras SA ("Abertis") for € 948 million (approximately CAD 1.5 billion).

The sale of Autopista Central represents the culmination of a very successful private investment for AIMCo and a demonstration of its ability to manage this unique asset through the investment life cycle.  This mutually beneficial transaction further provides a unique opportunity for Abertis to consolidate its interests under its Chilean Road Portfolio, furthering its current strategy.

Autopista Central is a 61-kilometer, six-lane highway in Santiago that went into operation in 2007. AIMCo acquired a 50% stake in Autopista Central de Chile in December 2010, on behalf of certain of its clients, joining a consortium of companies with 100% ownership of Autopista Central SA unit, a Santiago-based provider of toll roads operations services. The consortium, now solely-owned by Abertis, holds the concession until 2031.

"AIMCo has enjoyed working with the strong management team of Autopista Central and our partner Abertis over the last five years," says Ben Hawkins, Senior Vice President, Infrastructure & Timberlands at AIMCo. "Autopista Central has one of the best management teams in the industry, and the acquisition will allow Abertis to achieve further synergies and benefits to its portfolio.  We are happy to have been an owner of this important piece of infrastructure to Santiago, and remain committed to investing further in Chile given the right opportunities."

AIMCo Chief Executive Officer, Kevin Uebelein, states further, "Today's transaction realizes excellent gains for AIMCo's clients. Our talented and capable team of Infrastructure investment professionals maximized the value of this asset through each stage of the investment lifecycle as evidenced by this outcome."

About Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo)

AIMCo is one of Canada's largest and most diversified institutional investment managers with more than $90 billion of assets under management. AIMCo was established on January 1, 2008 with a mandate to provide superior long-term investment results for its clients. AIMCo operates at arms-length from the Government of Alberta and invests globally on behalf of 27 pension, endowment and government funds in the Province of Alberta. For more information please visit www.aimco.alberta.ca.

The AIMCo Infrastructure group manages a portfolio of over $4 billion in investments, comprised primarily of long-term equity positions in OECD-based infrastructure assets. These assets typically provide essential services to the public, have an operating history, and are either regulated or have highly contracted revenues with the potential for long-term capital appreciation. AIMCo infrastructure investments are intended to match long duration real return asset characteristics with inflation-indexed pension liabilities.

SOURCE Alberta Investment Management Corp.

For further information: Media Contact: Dénes Németh, Corporate Communication, O: 780-392-3857, M: 780-932-4013, E: [e-mail]