Trinity advises on establishment and first close of ARM-Harith Infra fund

Trinity is pleased to have advised on the establishment and first close of the ARM-Harith Infrastructure Investment Fund (the “Fund“). Trinity advised the fund manager on the transaction. The fund is a joint venture between Nigeria-based asset manager Asset & Resource Management Company (“ARM“) and the fund manager Harith General Partners (manager of the Pan-African Infrastructure Development Fund and owner of Frontier Markets Fund Managers Limited, the fund manager of Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund and GuarantCo Limited). The initial close comprises US$91 million in capital commitments and the fund will focus on the transportation, energy and utilities sectors in West Africa, with a target spend of US$250 million.

Investors in the first close included ARM, Harith, African Development Bank and the local pension fund administrators of Nigerian Breweries, Chevron and Total E&P. Trinity’s Head of Private Equity, Hugh Naylor noted, “There are tremendous infrastructure investment opportunities in West Africa and bringing together ARM’s knowledge and leadership together with AfDB as anchor and experienced investor with Harith’s solid track record in delivering infrastructure projects across Africa means that the fund is well-placed to be a key and influential investor in infrastructure development in the region.”

Trinity is involved in a number of key West African infrastructure investments and recently advised the project company on the 340MW Cenpower transaction which closed in December 2014. Trinity is currently advising the project company on the 459MW Azura IPP in Edo State, Nigeria as well as Lagos State on the restructuring of the Lekki-Epe Expressway. The Azura project is the first of a new wave of project-financed greenfield IPPs being developed in Nigeria and is often described as a pathfinder project in the region. The Fund has already subscribed for an equity stake in the project.