EQT portfolio company Hector Rail is selling its UK subsidiary GB Railfreight, a rail freight operator in the UK, to Infracapital, the infrastructure equity arm of M&GPrudential. GB Railfreight was founded in 1999 and provides freight and non-freight haulage services for customers including Network Rail, MSC, Bombardier, Drax, Tarmac and Aggregate Industries. It employs 900 people and moves around 23% of UK’s rail cargo, making it the third largest rail freight operator in the UK. The business was acquired by EQT, through its existing portfolio company Hector Rail, in 2016. Since then GB Railfreight has expanded its contract portfolio and market share, increasing its revenues by 60% to more than £200 million and its fleet size by 40%. Following the sale of GB Railfreight, EQT will continue to own the remaining Hector Rail investment consisting of Hector Rail AB, with operations across Scandinavia, and Hector Rail GmbH, with domestic operations in Germany. John Smith, CEO and Founder of GB Railfreight, said: “Together with EQT, the Company has been able to continue on our strong growth trajectory, adding a range of new freight services across the UK rail network and supporting the growth of the UK economy by transporting goods and materials across the country.” Anna Sundell, Managing Director at EQT Partners and Investment Advisor to EQT Infrastructure, added: “GB Railfreight has continued to grow and gain market share while continuing to foster a strong safety-oriented culture and best-in-class operations, ensuring that the Company can deliver high-quality services to all its customers.”
