News from Manila, everyone! Local conglomerate Aboitiz Equity Ventures (AEV) recently announced that it plans to sell a 40% stake in its infrastructure arm, Aboitiz InfraCapital, to Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP).

GIP is a wholly-owned unit of BlackRock, a global investment management firm.

• Both parties are in “the process of finalizing a strategic partnership”, according to AEV.
• Hush hush. The exact value of the deal was not disclosed.

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🚢 About GIP

GIP manages over $183B in infrastructure assets across energy, transport, digital infrastructure, and water utility sectors.

• This includes London’s Gatwick Airport and Australia’s Port of Melbourne.

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✈️ A little background

Aboitiz InfraCapital operates several airport assets in the Philippines, such as the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, the Laguindingan International Airport, and the New Bohol-Panglao International Airport.

• Oh, and they also have interests in other sectors like water infrastructure, data centers, power plants, and telecommunications.

On Thursday last week, shares in AEV gained 2.29% in late afternoon trading.

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🇵🇭 For the Philippines

AEV is owned by the Aboitiz Group, run by one of the most prominent business families in the Philippines. With an estimated net worth of $2.2B, AEV has interests in banking, financial services, food manufacturing, and real estate.

👀 What’s with this deal?

The local government is boosting its infrastructure spending to at least $35B by 2028 to accelerate big-ticket projects like the Metro Manila Subway, which will cover 33km and 17 key stations.

• Oh, and once completed, this could become one of the biggest foreign infrastructure investments in the Philippines in recent years.
• President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said the deal will help build infrastructure that is more “resilient, inclusive, and forward-looking”.

Next steps. The deal is still subject to due diligence and regulatory approvals.