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Charter Hall and GIC take stake in Ampol
Herbert Smith Freehills has advised Ampol on the establishment of $1.4 billion property trust and acquisition of a 49 per cent interest by Charter Hall and GIC consortium.
Tony Zhang
Firm: Herbert Smith Freehills (Ampol).
Deal: Herbert Smith Freehills has advised Ampol on the establishment of an unlisted property trust that will own 203 core freehold convenience retail sites and the acquisition of a 49 per cent minority interest in the trust by a Charter Hall and GIC consortium.
Area: M&A.
Key players: The Herbert Smith Freehills team was led by partners Robert Bileckij, David Sinn and Philippa Stone, who were supported by senior associates William Hickey, Niresha Mudalige and Japonica Sheridan, solicitor Jennie Bian, and graduate Benedict Cheung.
Partner Jinny Chaimungkalanont and senior associate Jasmine Gharib advised in relation to stamp duty.
Herbert Smith Freehills senior associate Stacia Super was seconded to the Ampol legal team to assist with the transaction.
Deal significance: Charter Hall Group (ASX: CHC) and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC will acquire their stake in Ampol’s (ASX: ALD) $682 million trust, reflecting a weighted average capitalisation rate of 5.5 per cent and valuing the entire property trust at $1.4 billion.
Starting in 2020, Caltex has been transitioning back to the Ampol (Australian Motorists Petrol Company) name through a rebranding process that is expected to take three years.
Ampol managing director and CEO Matt Halliday said the transaction represents compelling value in volatile market conditions.
“Following the completion of our retail network review in 2019, we identified the opportunity to unlock the value of our high-quality retail property assets through a transaction that would demonstrate value, whilst importantly allowing Ampol to retain strategic and operational control over our core [convenience retail] network,” Mr Halliday said.
“Today’s announcement was made possible by the significant amount of work undertaken over the past year and represents the successful execution of the strategy communicated to the market in late 2019.”
The transaction is expected to complete by end of 2020, subject to a number of conditions precedent being satisfied.
“We are delighted to be advising Ampol on this milestone transaction, made possible through the significant work undertaken by the Ampol team and its advisers over the past year. The close collaboration between the Ampol and Herbert Smith Freehills teams was a highlight,” Mr Bileckij said.
“It was fantastic to advise Ampol on this transaction as it creates a long-term strategic alliance between Ampol and its new real estate partners, Charter Hall and GIC, and clearly demonstrates the confidence that institutional investors have in this segment of the Australian real estate market,” Mr Sinn, who heads Herbert Smith Freehills’ Asia-Pacific real estate practice added.
