The AMP Capital Diversified Infrastructure Trust (ADIT) and AMP Capital Core Infrastructure Fund (CIF) have attracted their first New Zealand investors, reflecting growing interest locally in the asset class.
The funds have appealed to New Zealand investors, including a number of Iwi Trusts, due to a strong track record of long-term stable returns and low volatility.
The ongoing investor demand for these funds reflects continued investment by AMP Capital in its infrastructure investment capabilities, providing investors global exposure to sectors including transport infrastructure, utilities and energy. For example, both ADIT and CIF hold stakes in the New Zealand electricity and gas distributor Powerco.
“New Zealand investors are increasingly seeking to increase their exposure to the asset class"
AMP Capital New Zealand Managing Director Grant Hassell said: “I’m delighted to welcome our first New Zealand investors into ADIT and CIF. Infrastructure is an asset class that continues to go from strength to strength globally due to its stable long-term returns and defensive qualities.
“New Zealand investors are increasingly seeking to increase their exposure to the asset class and they are particularly interested in funds and assets that have strong ESG credentials. ADIT and CIF are actively managed against a rigorous ESG framework, which has caught the attention of a number of New Zealand investors,” he said.
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies are used to guide investment decisions and ongoing management of the funds. ADIT has been ranked by GRESB’s infrastructure ratings as the best in the world for ESG for the last two years, and Powerco ranked number one globally for energy and utility companies.
AMP Capital Diversified Infrastructure Trust
Established in 1995 ADIT is one of the longest-running infrastructure funds in the world, and invests in a diversified portfolio of core infrastructure assets in Australia and New Zealand. The fund primarily targets mature unlisted assets with diversified exposure to transport links, transport nodes, energy and utilities, and social infrastructure.
The addition of the first New Zealand investors has continued the momentum for ADIT after a strong 2017, which included the successful refinancing of one of the fund’s assets, Australian rolling stock public private partnership Reliance Rail, and a strong capital raising.
ADIT now has approximately 25 institutional investors across the world, with funds under management around $1.3 billion.
ADIT Fund Manager Michael Cummings added: “In terms of our strategy for 2018, we have a number of key pipeline opportunities in sectors such as student housing and energy as we look to deploy capital opportunistically and gain greater diversity across the portfolio. ESG remains a top priority for us as strong ESG credentials provide a positive correlation with comprehensive risk management policies and sustainable financial performance. ADIT is the number one performing unlisted Australian infrastructure fund over a one and five-year period, according to the Mercer Investment Performance Survey.”
AMP Capital Core Infrastructure Fund
CIF provides smaller investors access to both listed and global unlisted infrastructure assets, typically only available to large institutional investors. The fund provides diversified exposure to multiple sectors, OECD regions and asset types including airports, transport infrastructure, water, gas, and electricity.
Since its inception in 2007, CIF has grown to $540 million in funds under management and has a broad client base of investors from Australia, Asia and now New Zealand.
CIF Fund Manager John Julian commented: “Infrastructure has been a strong performing asset class and we’re seeing continued interest from investors who want to access unlisted infrastructure investments not usually available to smaller investors. We’re pleased with the continued growth of the fund and will continue to selectively invest across sectors and regions where we see the best risk-adjusted opportunities for our investors.”
