Macquarie Generation bids due on Monday
Indicative bids for Macquarie Generation, which boasts two coal-fired power stations the New South Wales government says are worth $2.1 billion, are due Monday.
Bidders for the for the state-owned Hunter Valley plants, Liddell and Bayswater, are expected to include China’s state-owned Shenhua Group, advised by Morgan Stanley and Macquarie Group, Brisbane-based ERM Power Ltd., advised by UBS AG and Citigroup Inc advised AGL Energy Ltd.
The NSW government wants a premium over its $2.1 billion valuation but some bidders seem unwilling to pay that much.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc is advising the NSW government on the sale. A final decision on which company will successfully buy Macquarie Generation is expected next year.
Infrastructure mandates have been the hot ticket to win for investment banks this year. Australia’s biggest takeover in 2013 has been the $4.93 billion acquisition of Port Kembla and Port Botany by an investment group led by Industry Funds Management, according to Bloomberg data. The IFM group bought the ports from the NSW government.
Other infrastructure assets scheduled to be sold in coming months include the port of Newcastle, a 26.7 per cent stake in the Port of Brisbane currently held by Global Infrastructure Partners, Sydney’s bankrupt cross city tunnel and Brisbane toll road BrisConnections, which is also in receivership.