3i Infrastructure buys 50% of Dutch energy-from-waste group

3i Infrastructure has agreed to spend €201m on acquiring a 50% stake in Dutch waste treatment and disposal company Attero as part of joint buyout from its private equity parent.

3i Infrastructure will invest alongside asset manager DWS Group's infrastructure investment business to acquire Attero.

Attero owns two energy from waste plants, two sorting and pre-treatment facilities, six anaerobic digestion facilities, seven composting facilities and ten landfills.

The 1.8m-ton capacity EfW business accounts for roughly 80% of revenues of which a quarter relates to selling electricity and heat. Attero sources its waste from a diverse mix of domestic municipalities, commercial and industrial customers, as well as a number of UK and Irish exporters.

FTSE 250-listed 3i Infrastructure, which is around 34%-owned by 3i Group, said Attero has good revenue visibility due to its long-term contracts with customers and two of the largest and most efficient EfW plants in the Dutch market, with good port, road and rail access for both import and domestic waste supply.

Richard Laing, chairman of 3i Infrastructure, said: "We are delighted to be announcing this new investment in Attero, the leading Dutch player in the waste treatment market. We believe the investment will deliver strong cash yields for our shareholders, and complements our existing portfolio well through providing further geographic and sector diversity."

Investment adviser Phil White said Attero was strongly positioned to benefit from favourable underlying trends in the European waste market, driven by EU directives targeting more recycling, with EfW playing an important role in treating combustible waste which cannot be, or is not, recycled.

In the year to end-March, 3IN completed two divestments, selling its stake in Elenia for proceeds of £725m and its stake in Anglian Water Group for £395m, leading to £425m being returned to shareholders in cash as a special dividend last month.