Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) has agreed to acquire full ownership of Cando Rail & Terminals Ltd. (Cando), a leader in first- and last-mile rail infrastructure.
Headquartered in Brandon, Man., Cando serves as a critical link in the rail supply chain, connecting industrial shippers to the Class I rail network through more than 40 industrial rail yards, nine owned terminals and one short-line railroad.
Cando has undergone rapid expansion in recent years thanks to a private equity investment from TorQuest Partners that enabled Cando to make significant investments in its infrastructure. Since 2018, Cando has more than doubled its revenue and more than tripled its EBITDA.
“Our investment in Cando exemplifies TorQuest’s strategy of partnering with great people and investing in our businesses to achieve exciting results,” TorQuest partner Jonathan Fraser said in a statement.
AIMCo, an institutional investor managing $168.3 billion on behalf of 32 pension, endowment and government funds in Alberta, said Cando would make a strong addition to its infrastructure portfolio.
“Cando is the type of platform investment that has become the hallmark of AIMCo’s infrastructure portfolio,” said Ben Hawkins, AIMCo’s head of infrastructure, renewables and sustainable investing. “With this investment, our clients add one of Canada’s most successful rail platforms to their infrastructure portfolios.”
AIMCo’s acquisition of Cando is expected to close in late Q3 or Q4 pending regulatory approval. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“We are delighted with the success of our partnership with TorQuest and excited about the next chapter of our business evolution in partnership with AIMCo,” said Brian Cornick, president and CEO of Cando.
MLT Aikins was pleased to act as counsel to Cando on this milestone transaction. Cando’s legal team included Steven Kohn, Pamela Hilderman, Scott Exner, Michael Ziesmann, Shandra Czarnecki, Eric Buettner, Nigel Thompson, Danielle Graff, Davis Hirsch, Erin Tramley, Amy Gelhorn, Marek Coutu and Brenden Drews.
Our lawyers have worked on numerous significant private and public transactions across Western Canada. Learn more about our Mergers & Acquisitions team.