Australian infrastructure investor IFM Investors has agreed to acquire a controlling 63.9% stake in Associated British Ports (ABP), the UK’s largest ports operator, in a transaction reported to value the business at more than £10bn.
image: ABP (Port of Southampton)
The agreement, one of the largest UK infrastructure transactions announced in 2026, will see Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) sell its 33.9% holding and the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) dispose of its 30% stake. Financial terms have not been disclosed by the parties. Completion is expected in the first half of 2027, subject to the necessary approvals.
ABP operates 19 ports across England, Scotland and Wales, handling approximately a quarter of the UK’s seaborne trade. Its network includes major gateways such as Southampton and the Humber ports, which serve manufacturing, energy, automotive, bulk cargo and container supply chains.
The company also plays a significant role in the UK’s energy transition. ABP says its facilities support more than half of the country’s offshore wind sector, providing infrastructure for the movement of components and equipment used in renewable energy projects.
IFM said it intended to support the continued development of ABP’s infrastructure and operations, drawing on its long-term investment approach and experience in ports and other essential infrastructure. The investor is owned by Australian pension funds and the UK pension fund Nest, and manages investments across infrastructure and other asset classes.
Kyle Mangini, IFM’s global head of infrastructure, said the transaction reflected the investor’s commitment to directing pension capital into UK infrastructure.
ABP chief executive Henrik L Pedersen described the agreement as a new chapter for the business, saying the investment would support further growth opportunities and continued long-term investment for customers, local communities and the wider UK economy.
The transaction marks the exit of two long-standing Canadian institutional investors. OMERS first invested in ABP in 2006, when the ports group was taken private, while CPP Investments acquired its stake in 2015. Both investors said the sale would allow them to realise value from their holdings and redirect capital towards other investment opportunities.
Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC and Wren House Infrastructure are among ABP’s other shareholders. The sale agreement does not itself set out specific new investment commitments, changes to port operations or alterations to charges for shipping and cargo customers.