Global alternative asset manager Brookfield Asset Management has formed a long-term joint venture with Tainui Group Holdings (TGH) to invest up to NZ$1 billion (about $583 million) in Ruakura Superhub in Hamilton, New Zealand.
TGH is a wholly-owned commercial entity of Waikato-Tainui, one of the largest iwis (tribal groups) in New Zealand with more than 86,000 members.
Under the agreement, the joint venture will initially acquire four logistics and industrial assets within the Ruakura Superhub currently leased to tenants including Kmart, Big Chill, Refrigafreighters, and PBT Express.
It will then proceed to develop an additional 70 hectares of logistics real estate within the hub’s intermodal precinct.
The JV will, over seven years, invest NZ$1 billion into the Superhub, and will consider further investment opportunities that present strong risk-adjusted returns, the companies said.
All 610 hectares of land at the Superhub will remain under Waikato-Tainui ownership. TGH will provide investment and property management services to the JV.
The Ruakura Superhub services around 45% of New Zealand’s population, 42% of the nation’s freight, and 55% of the country’s GDP with a 30-ha inland port connected via rail to Auckland’s port and the Port of Tauranga.
“The new JV reflects the strength of the Maaori economy and signals that the iwi is open for global business. As an iwi our horizon is intergenerational; we are about building a legacy for future generations,” said Tukoroirangi Morgan, chair of the executive committee of Waikato Tainui.
Brookfield global alternative asset manager, headquartered in New York, with more than $1 trillion of assets under management across renewable power and transition, infrastructure, private equity, real estate, and credit.
The firm has a global logistics portfolio worth $26 billion and spanning 17 million square metres across five continents.
In New Zealand, Brookfield said it has been a consistent investor since 2007, with a portfolio across real estate, infrastructure, and private equity. It currently has $1 billion in assets under management across the country.
Across the Asia-Pacific region, Brookfield has completed three deals: La Trobe Financial, an Australian diversified credit asset manager acquired by the firm in 2022; Hong Kong-headquartered garment label manufacturer Trimco International Holdings Limited, acquired from Affinity Equity Partners for an enterprise value of $850 million in November 2022; and Everise, a customer experience (CX) solutions and technology company acquired in 2020 from Everstone.
