Genesee & Wyoming Inc., a Darien-based freight railroad operator is being acquired by Toronto’s Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. and Singapore-based GIC in an $8.4 billion deal.
Genesee & Wyoming will become a privately held company under the deal, a statement from the company said. It currently owns 120 short line railroads, mostly in North America, but also owns operations in Europe and Australia.
“We believe this transaction is an excellent outcome for all G&W stakeholders,” G&W chairman and chief executive Jack Hellmann said in a statement. “For our current stockholders, the sale price realizes significant value and represents a 39.5% premium to our March 8th share price.”
Brookfield will provide about $500 million of equity as an infrastructure investment, the statement said. The remainder of the business will be owned by Brookfield Infrastructure’s institutional partners and GIC.
“Brookfield Infrastructure’s investment will be funded from existing liquidity which totaled approximately $1.9 billion at June 30, 2019,” the statement said.
Genesee owns and operates Connecticut Southern Railroad (CSO), which is a nearly 80-mile stretch of track running between Connecticut and Massachusetts. It acquired that line in 2012.
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