AMP : Capital acquires Western Australian prison in PPP deal

AMP Capital has acquired the Kalgoorlie-based Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison Redevelopment Project from Lend Lease and MLC

The project, which will sit within AMP Capital's Community Infrastructure Fund (CommIF), is a public private partnership (PPP) with the state government of Western Australia.

It involves two stages of capital works: the design, construction and commission of a new 350-bed prison and associated infrastructure, which is now commissioned, and then the demolition of the existing 100- bed facility and site remediation, which is underway. The deal also includes the provision of facilities management services.

The concession period is approximately 28 years, which comprises the construction period plus 25 years.

AMP Capital Community Infrastructure Fund Manager Andrea McElhinney said: 'This project provides long-term, highly predictable cash flows that are underpinned by the Western Australian government. It has an attractive risk and return profile that fits perfectly with CommIF's investment mandate.

'The acquisition also allows CommIF to expand its geographic exposure to Western Australia, providing our investors with further diversification benefit.'

CommIF is currently invested in 13 social infrastructure assets in Australia and New Zealand worth approximately $8.2 billion in enterprise value, which incorporates the value of the equity and the debt. These include primary, secondary and tertiary education institutions and other assets in the health, justice, defence, water and community sectors.

CommIF's investor base is made up primarily of domestic institutional investors and high-net-worthindividuals but the fund is starting to attract the attention of global infrastructure investors.

Ms McElhinney noted: 'Social infrastructure not only provides investors with attractive returns that are characteristic of the broader infrastructure asset class but our investors also like the fact its assets benefit the community. Offshore interest in Australian infrastructure has been a major theme of the local market during the last two years and social infrastructure has not been immune to this, with the first offshoreinvestor coming into CommIF this year.'

Financial close for the deal, which is subject to consent from the state and financiers, was achieved on 5 October 2016.

King & Wood Mallesons acted as AMP Capital's legal adviser.

About AMP Capital
AMP Capital is a specialist investment manager with more than A$160 billion in funds under managementas of 30 June 2016 and more than 250 investment professionals. AMP Capital, which is headquartered in Sydney but has offices in locations such as New York, Chicago, London and Hong Kong, has a heritageand strength in real estate and infrastructure, and specialist expertise in fixed income, equities and multiasset solutions. It is a subsidiary of AMP Limited, which was established in 1849, and is one of Australia's largest retail and corporate pension providers.

AMP Capital is one of the most experienced global infrastructure managers with more than 28 years' experience and having made over 130 infrastructure equity and debt investments globally. AMP Capital was one of the first investors globally to invest in infrastructure when it participated in the financing of theSydney Harbour Tunnel in 1988. AMP Capital today manages unlisted and listed infrastructureinvestments in Asia, Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand.