John Laing Infrastructure Fund Ltd notes that earlier today John Laing Group plc announced the conditional sale of its Project Management Services activities in the UK to HCP Management Services. The announcement explains that 62 of John Laing’s Management Services Agreements (“MSAs”) will, subject to John Laing obtaining consents at project level, transfer to HCP as part of the sale.
In respect of JLIF’s portfolio as at 31 March 2016, John Laing provided MSA services to 32 of JLIF’s UK based PPP projects, each under a separate MSA agreement. The provision of such services includes the following:
– Monitoring and reporting of construction and services activities;
– Management of sub-contractors/service providers;
– Provision of commercial support;
– Provision of company secretarial and financial administrative services; and
– Oversight and management of financial operations.
Subject to completion of the Transaction, the MSA service provision will be provided by HCP. HCP already provides MSA services to three of JLIF’s UK-based projects within its portfolio as at 31 March 2016. Following completion of the Transaction, John Laing will continue to provide MSA services to JLIF’s three Canadian projects.
The services provided under the MSAs are separate to the services provided to JLIF by John Laing Capital Management Limited (“JLCM”), a subsidiary of John Laing and the Company’s Investment Adviser, which will continue to be provided by JLCM.
The Transaction is subject to customary consents and is expected to complete no later than the fourth quarter of 2016. It is expected that consents will be required to the transfer to HCP of the MSAs in respect of projects in which JLIF has a shareholding. The Board of JLIF will consider any such requests carefully, especially as regards the ongoing service provision to these projects and in the light of requirements under the Listing Rules of the UK Listing Authority.
JLIF : John Laing Infrastructure – changes to management services agreements