After the surprise announcement this morning of the sale of Wightlink ferries from Macquarie, the Isle of Wight has been introduced to a new organisation – Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Partners LLP.
In summary, they’re an organisation that focuses on investing in “transport, energy and utilities across the UK, Europe and North America”.
Here’s some background
Below is the detail of what we’ve been able to gather about Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Partners LLP, or BBIP.
Balfour Beatty (details on the plc below) announced in November 2010 it was setting up a ‘funds management business’, the BBIP Website says they did for the following reasons:
Our objective was to utilise a combination of infrastructure asset knowledge, skills and experience that has accumulated within the Group, particularly in the Infrastructure Investments division and Parsons Brinckerhoff, to earn a superior return on capital as well as advisory fees.
BBIP set up in 2011
BBIP itself was set up in 2011. They now have offices in London, New York and Munich and have been seeking investments from other financial institutions.
In January 2013, they announced the closure of the first round of funds, of £200m. Balfour Beatty committed £70m to it, saying “ultimately reducing Balfour Beatty plc’s share in the fund to c.10%.”
In March 2013 BBIP announced the amount of committed funds it had had raised from $317m to $420m.
They also said “key target sectors of transport, energy and utilities across the UK, Europe and North America.”
Balfour Beatty plc
It’s no surprise that BBIP is related to Balfour Beatty plc – but in their words, they state that they’re “independently of Balfour Beatty plc.”
Balfour Beatty was formed in 1909, Wikipedia tells us, initially the Company concentrated on tramways. Well known for construction, they’ve grown into a formidable company. They now define themselves as “a leading international infrastructure group”.
They’re listed on the London Stock Exchange and currently (at time of publishing) have a Market Cap of £1.6 billion pounds.
What’s an LLP?
Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Partners is an LLP. Perhaps not familiar, an LLP is a Limited Liability Partnership.
Wikipedia has a whole page about LLPs in the UK, including this brief section below
In relation to tax, however, a UK LLP is similar to a partnership, namely, it is tax-transparent, that is to say it pays no UK corporation tax or capital gains tax. Instead, LLP income and/or gains are distributed gross to partners as self-employed persons, rather than as PAYE employees. Partners receiving income and/or gains from an LLP are liable for their own taxation.
Balfour Beatty plc sold something today
Balfour Beatty plc announced some other news this morning, which Reuters reported like this (link):
* BALFOUR BEATTY – Troubled British infrastructure group Balfour Beatty has sold 80 percent of its interest in its offshore transmission project for 40 million pounds ($62 million) as part of plans to overhaul its business.
More comprehensive details of the announcement are also available.
This is just what we’ve found so far, as ever, the more we find, we’ll add here.
