PE Deals

TorQuest Partners to sell Cando Rail & Terminals to AIMCo

The transaction is expected to close in late third quarter or fourth quarter of this year.

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  • Cando Rail & Terminals is a provider of specialized rail operating services
  • Founded in 1978, the company operates an interconnected network of 40 plus industrial railyards, nine owned terminals and one short-line railroad
  • TorQuest Partners first invested in Cando in 2018

Canadian private equity firm TorQuest Partners has agreed to sell Brandon, Manitoba-based Cando Rail & Terminals, a provider of specialized rail operating services, to Alberta Investment Management Corp. No financial terms were disclosed.

Founded in 1978, Cando operates an interconnected network of 40 plus industrial railyards, nine owned terminals and one short-line railroad.

TorQuest first invested in the company in 2018.

AIMCo is a global institutional investor with significant experience in the transportation sector, including as part of a consortium of investors that acquired the Porterbrook Group of companies in 2014. AIMCo has C$168.3 billion of assets under management as at December 2021.

“Cando is the type of platform investment that has become the hallmark of AIMCo’s infrastructure portfolio. With this investment, our clients add one of Canada’s most successful rail platforms to their infrastructure portfolios,” said Ben Hawkins, head of infrastructure, renewables and sustainable investing at AIMCo, in a statement. “We believe in Cando’s incredible potential and look forward to collaborating with their exceptional management to realize a continued track record of growth.”

The deal is expected to close in late third quarter or fourth quarter of this year.

Wells Fargo Securities, LLC served as the lead financial advisor to Cando and TorQuest, and Northborne Partners, LLC also served as a financial advisor. Torys LLP and MLT Aikins LLP served as legal advisors to Cando and TorQuest.

RBC Capital Markets served as an exclusive financial advisor to AIMCo on the transaction. Stikeman Elliott LLP, Mayer Brown LLP and Fletcher & Sippel LLC served as legal advisors to AIMCo.

Founded in 2002, TorQuest Partners is a Canadian manager of mid-market private equity funds. It has more than C$3.5 billion of capital under management and is currently investing from TorQuest Partners Fund V, a C$1.4 billion fund that closed in 2020.