Macquarie sells Safeway Concessions to VINCI Highways at EV of Rs 15K crore

Safeway comprises a portfolio of nine toll road concessions located in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, totalling nearly 700 kilometres across key national transport corridors. Financial close is expected by the end of 2026, it said.

Safeway was set up under the National Highways Authority of India’s (NHAI) toll operate transfer (TOT) model in 2018. It was India’s first major toll road privatisation and represents one of the longest- tenured operating road portfolios in the country. 

Post aquisition moves

Since acquiring Safeway in 2018, MAM has developed the platform into a well-established operating business, implementing several strategic asset management initiatives to drive growth and operational excellence. This included setting up local operations and expanding into three offices, building a strong management team and implementing global standards across safety, governance and risk management, MAM said in a release.

The scale and quality of the highway portfolio present a rare opportunity in a fast-growing market and support VINCI Highways’ long-term mobility infrastructure strategy, reflecting its first entry into India’s roads sector, it said 

Verena Lim, Co-Head of Asia-Pacific Macquarie Asset Management Infrastructure and Asia CEO for Macquarie Group, said: “India has the world’s second-largest road network, with a rapidly growing middle class driving higher demand for road usage. ” Lim said 

As one of the largest pioneer foreign investors in India’s infrastructure sector, they continue to see compelling long-term opportunities across the market from transport to digital and energy infrastructure, Lin said , adding ,” We look forward to applying the same discipline and operating expertise as we invest and scale high-quality infrastructure assets in India. We believe, this should act as a conduit for long-term strategic capital and broader capital market participation over time.”