Investment firm Blackstone Infrastructure acquires Safe Harbor Marinas
Global investment firm Blackstone has acquired Safe Harbor Marinas, the largest marina and superyacht servicing business in the United States, from Sun Communities Inc.
The acquisition, with a value of $5.65 billion, was from funds managed by Blackstone Infrastructure, and builds on Blackstone Infrastructure’s diverse investment portfolio.
Blackstone Infrastructure is an active investor across energy, transportation, digital infrastructure and water and waste infrastructure sectors. Its portfolio companies include QTS, the data center provider in the US; AirTrunk, the data center platform in the Asia-Pacific region; Carrix, the marine terminal operator in North America; and Invenergy, the private renewables developer in the United States.
It seeks to apply a long-term buy-and-hold strategy to large-scale infrastructure assets with a focus on delivering stable, long-term capital appreciation together with a predictable annual cash flow yield. Its approach to infrastructure investing is one that focuses on responsible stewardship and stakeholder engagement to create value for its investors.
Heidi Boyd, Senior Managing Director in Blackstone’s infrastructure business, said:
“Marinas benefit from key long-term thematic tailwinds including the growth of travel and leisure as well as population inflows into coastal cities. We believe Safe Harbor is the best positioned company in this sector, and we look forward to working with their terrific team to invest behind their existing marinas and to expand their footprint.”
Safe Harbor owns and operates 138 marinas across the U.S. and Puerto Rico, offers dry docks and lifting gear, a superyacht fuel program, and refit systems, as well as boat storage and servicing. Sun Communities, a real estate investment trust, initially acquired the company in 2020 for around $2.1 billion.
Gary Shiffman, Chairman and CEO of SunCommunities, commented:
“We are very pleased with this transaction which further accelerates Sun’s strategy to improve the company’s leverage profile and refocus on our core segments.
“I would like to thank the Safe Harbor team for their dedication and hard work throughout our four-year partnership. We are incredibly pleased with the performance of Safe Harbor and with the outcome of this highly successful sale process. We anticipate that Blackstone will further Safe Harbor’s position as the leading marina and superyacht servicing business in the US.”
Wells Fargo served as lead financial advisor to Blackstone Infrastructure and provided committed financing for the transaction, while Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP served as legal advisors.