Aurizon Holdings announced an agreement to acquire One Rail Australia from Macquarie Group’s asset management arm for 2.35 billion Australian dollars ($1.76 billion).
Macquarie Asset Management is divesting One Rail after five years of ownership and investment in the business, which has become a unique platform of critical-rail infrastructure and a presence in New South Wales, South Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland.
The acquisition will boost the rail-freight operator's bulk business as it seeks to diversify away from coal haulage, and follows a goal announced by the company earlier this year to double its earnings from the bulk market in the next decade.
During Macquarie Asset Management’s ownership, more than $A250 million ($187 million) in capital expenditure was invested to support the management team expanding the business into new markets, growing its customer base and workforce, and increasing the diversification of the commodities it
