KKR Acquires Australia’s ProTen for $850 Million

KKR, a leading global investment firm in the US, and Aware Super, a leading Australian super fund, have signed an agreement under which the funds managed by KKR will acquire ProTen Pty Limited, one of the largest agricultural infrastructure businesses in Australia, from Aware Super for $850 million.

Established in 2001, ProTen develops, owns, and operates farm infrastructure for Australia’s poultry supply chain, and plays an important role in supporting access to affordable, sustainable nutrition for Australian households.

Today, the company manages poultry infrastructure including more than 700 poultry sheds across over 60 farms, located in key agricultural regions nationwide. The transaction is expected to close later this year, subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Aware Super, which manages $124.73 billion on behalf of its 1.2 million members, has owned ProTen since 2018 and has overseen significant growth in the business.

Aware Super’s infrastructure team expanded ProTen’s operational footprint across all states, along with a four-fold expansion of its property portfolio. KKR’s investment will build on ProTen’s position for continued growth and its operational excellence in the poultry supply chain.

KKR is making this investment from its Asia Pacific Infrastructure Investors II Fund and this is its latest infrastructure investment in the ANZ region.

Past investments include Zenith Energy, a leading independent remote power producer in Australia; Queensland Airports Limited in Australia, which consists of four airports in Queensland, including Gold Coast Airport; Spark Infrastructure, which owns high-quality, regulated electricity networks across Australia; and Ritchies Transport, a leading transportation operator in New Zealand. KKR’s Asia Pacific infrastructure platform has grown to approximately $13 billion in assets under management since it was established in 2019.

Unique Opportunity

Andrew Jennings, Managing Director and Head of Australia & New Zealand (ANZ) Infrastructure, KKR, said that their investment in ProTen is a unique opportunity to acquire a high-quality agricultural infrastructure asset, supported by availability-based long-term contracts, that plays an essential role in the food supply chain.

He said that KKR has been actively monitoring the agricultural infrastructure space as a high-conviction thematic and they were impressed by the quality of ProTen’s assets, its long-term contractual relationships with its customers, and the favourable dynamics within the poultry industry.

“As demand for sustainable protein and resilient food supply increases in Australia, we believe ProTen is well placed for continued growth. We look forward to leveraging KKR’s global network, operational expertise, and deep experience in scaling businesses to support ProTen,” he added.

Jiren Zhou, Aware Super Portfolio Manager – Infrastructure, said that they were proud to have grown ProTen into the leading business it is today, through their active stewardship of the business. Following seven years of significant investment, they have achieved this result on behalf of Aware Super, to grow their retirements funds and deliver long-term sustainable returns.

“This is an excellent example of how Aware Super’s disciplined and long-term approach has strengthened the fund’s high quality, diversified infrastructure portfolio, which currently has more than $13.13 billion invested globally.

ProTen CEO James Wentworth said that over the last seven years they have been unwavering in their commitment to and investment in the business. This support and the hard work of ProTen’s team has enabled them to service and grow with their customers.