Aberdeen Investments and infrastructure investor Rock Rail have reached an £800 million first close for a new platform investing in the next generation of UK passenger trains, attracting long-term international capital into Britain’s rail network.
The first close brings together a diversified syndicate of global institutional and secondary investors, led by StepStone and the Swiss PE firm Partners Group as co-lead investors, alongside a significant commitment from the sponsors, Aberdeen Investments and Rock Rail.
Further capital is expected ahead of final close.
The platform will fund the delivery of Rock Rail’s current rolling stock fleet and deliver new, more efficient trains to replace ageing fleets, improving passenger experience, increasing capacity and supporting decarbonisation.
Over the past decade, Rock Rail and Aberdeen have funded and delivered new trains across the UK, investing more than £3.3 billion and building a platform that now owns and manages over 10% of the UK’s passenger fleet.
The next phase is focused on efficiently scaling that model – bringing additional private capital into the market to fund the next generation of rolling stock. At a time when public capital is under pressure to fund defence and other sectors, this approach enables continued investment in new digital trains. This provides much needed jobs and economic growth for this leading UK manufacturing sector and increases passenger demand for rail services and boosts regional economies while reducing reliance on taxpayer funding.
Mark Swindell, CEO & Founder of Rock Rail, said: “We’re very pleased to have reached this first close, which demonstrates strong international investor confidence in UK rail under the leadership of Great British Railways and its long-term future.
“We’ve already shown what this robust model can do by delivering over 1500 new vehicles over the past 5 years. Now we are bringing more global capital into the UK to keep new trains coming into service supporting the next phase of GBR investment across the network to significantly improve availability and reliability of passenger services.”
Dominic Helmsley, Head of Economic Infrastructure at Aberdeen Investments, said: “Over ten years since our first investment in UK passenger rolling stock, we’ve seen how infrastructure investment can unlock significant economic benefits – enhancing connectivity, strengthening regional development, and improving everyday journeys.
“This next phase builds on that foundation, bringing new capital into the sector to deliver the next generation of trains for the UK. This first close represents a significant milestone in the continued evolution of our transport infrastructure platform. The strong support at first close reflects investor confidence in both the quality of the underlying assets and the compelling opportunity to build a scaled rolling stock platform in the UK.”
Campbell Lutyens and J.P. Morgan are acting as financial advisors, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett as legal counsel to Aberdeen Investments and Rock Rail on the transaction.
