The recent appetite of Canadian pension funds for high-quality assets was demonstrated again in June as Allen & Overy (A&O), Ashurst, Proskauer Rose and Dickson Minto all won roles on the off-market, bilateral sale of Environmental Resources Management (ERM) to OMERS Private Equity and the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo).
The sale saw Charterhouse Capital Partners sell its stake in the $1.7bn business, turning to longstanding adviser Alastair Dickson from Dickson Minto, whose previous mandates for the private equity investment firm include acting on the company’s £1.35bn acquisition of Saga in 2004.
Meanwhile, environmental consultancy ERM also relied on an established relationship, calling on King & Wood Mallesons’ former corporate chief Steven Davis, who joined Proskauer in December 2014. Davis, who advised on the 2011 acquisition by Charterhouse, as well as previous investments in the business by Bridgepoint Advisers and 3i Group, told Legal Business: ‘A number of parties had expressed interest in the business and people were expecting there to be a formal process later this year. OMERS proved to be the most proactive of those interested and was able to steal a march on what otherwise might have been a formal process.’
Assisting OMERS and AIMCo on the buyout was A&O, which advised on all aspects of the transaction, including due diligence, financing, regulatory, antitrust and equity arrangements with management. The Magic Circle firm’s team was led by private equity specialist Gordon Milne, with support from corporate partner Stephen Lloyd.
Milne said the off-market nature of the deal was preferable: ‘If you can sell the business outside an auction to a credible buyer and someone that the management team are willing to work with as well, then it is quite attractive for everyone. Essentially OMERS and AIMCo have a track record of being able to do this confidentially and working within a very tight timetable.’
Ashurst also worked on the deal, acting for co-investor AIMCo, with a team led by corporate partner Karen Davies, energy partner Jan Sanders, tax specialist Richard Palmer and competition partner Ross Mackenzie.
kathryn.mccann@legalease.co.uk