The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (Omers) together own 67 per cent of Associated British Ports (ABP), giving them effective control over the UK’s biggest ports operator.
According to the Financial Times, a source familiar with the situation said a deal could be reached as soon as the second half of this year, although they cautioned that talks remain at an early stage.
ABP owns 21 ports in the UK, including Southampton and handles around a quarter of the country’s seaborne trade.
It’s reported that ABP have hired investment bank Morgan Stanley to explore a sale that could value the group at more than £10bn.
ABP Ports, CPPIB, Omers, Hermes and Morgan Stanley all declined to comment.