Infrastructure Investments Fund (IIF), a $553 million open-ended investment vehicle managed by J.P. Morgan, has agreed to purchase El Paso Electric (EPE) for $2.79 billion in cash, the electric company announced on June 3.
The IIF will pay $68.25 per share for a premium of 17.3 percent to the closing amount. The transaction is valued at $4.3 billion, including debt.
The core-plus, value-added fund invests in utilities, power, transportation and communications infrastructure projects across North America, Western Europe and Australia.
EPE and IIF have also agreed to provide a $21 million credit on customer electric bills over a period of 36 months.
The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2020 and is subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
After closing, EPE’s headquarters will remain in El Paso, Texas.
EPE services approximately 417,000 retail and wholesale customers in a 10,000-square-mile area of the Rio Grande valley in west Texas and southern New Mexico.
