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B&B Infrastructure to meet A$ hybrid investors

Thu Mar 22, 2007 11:34pm EDT

(For the latest Australia and New Zealand bond news, click on [AU/CRD] and then double click on the ID number)

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SYDNEY, March 23 (Reuters) - Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Ltd. BBI.AX will meet Australian investors next week ahead of a hybrid securities offer, a portfolio manager said on Friday.

The company has not disclosed details of the offer which is lead managed by Deutsche Bank and UBS, the portfolio manager said.

BBI's chief executive officer said in February the group plans to sell around A$250 million ($201 million) of hybrids to part-fund a US$2.2 billion purchase of U.S. utility NorthWestern Corp. NWEC.O.

The acquisition was partially funded earlier in March with the sale of A$422.1 million of new shares.

The specialist infrastructure fund invests in a broad range of energy assets, with a portfolio worth about A$10 billion.

Last year, it agreed to acquire U.S. utility NorthWestern Corp. NWEC.O for US$2.2 billion.

B&B Infrastructure, which has a market value of about A$3 billion, has received six out of the seven U.S. regulatory approvals required to complete the acquisition of NorthWestern.

NorthWestern is an electricity and gas transmission and distribution utility with operations in Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. ($1=A$1.24)



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