CPPIB, Cube in last lap for NIIF's Athaang road assets
NEW DELHI : Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and Cube Highways are in the final fray for the road assets of National Investment and Infrastructure Fund’s Athaang Infrastructure, two people aware of the matter said. The two entities are expected to submit their binding bids shortly. JP Morgan is running the transaction, which is expected to have an equity value of around ₹4,000 crore.
Final bids are expected in two weeks. While CPPIB is among Canada's largest pension funds, Cube is one of India’s largest private toll road operators. The portfolio on sale includes five road assets totalling 230 km.
The Economic Times had earlier reported that as many as 10 global and domestic infrastructure funds including CPPIB, KKR, Spain’s Abertis, France’ Vinci Highways, Edelweiss’ Sekura Roads and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) had signed non-disclosure agreements for the deal. “CPPIB and Cube Highways are the final two companies in fray for Athaang’s road assets. The final bids are expected within two weeks," said one of the two people cited above, requesting anonymity.
Spokespersons for CPPIB and JP Morgan declined comment, while spokespersons for NIIF and Cube Highways didn’t respond to queries emailed on Wednesday afternoon. The investor interest comes against the backdrop of rapid road construction in the country, with the government front-loading its ₹2.72 trillion capital expenditure in FY25. Mint earlier reported that in just the first month of the fiscal year, more than 20% of the capex allocated to the road ministry had been spent.
In the previous fiscal year, this level of spending was achieved only by the end of May. NIIF is sponsored by the Indian government, which holds a 49% interest. It
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