Eskimo sale provides payback for AMP

Friday 25th May 2001

By Chris Hutching

The sale of a significant portion of New Zealand's largest cold service provider, Eskimo Group, will provide partial payback for AMP and other institutional investors in the Greenstone Fund.

The Greenstone Fund is a private equity vehicle set up a few years ago in which the government has near-equal stakes with Axa, AMP and National Provident Fund. AMP also has a direct stake in Eskimo of 26%.

The fund is managed by Wellington-based Pencarrow Private Equity, which has evolved as a private equity- management partner with AMP recently on such deals as the Donaghys Industries and Eastern Equities management buyouts.

The original Eskimo management buyout was completed in 1994 and since that time the fledgling Canterbury company has bought five other cool-store operations around the country, including Auckland where it recently developed a new cold store near the airport. Staff numbers have increased from 33 to 300.

Pencarrow has assisted Eskimo's growth with capital and input at board level to the point where it has grown from a small owner-operator to a nationwide company with turnover of $60 million a year.

Now it is selling its refrigerated distribution centre business to P&O Cold Logistics (NZ) Ltd for an undisclosed amount. The refrigeration business represents about 60% of Eskimo's turnover and most of its staff and plant.

The refrigerated distribution business handles about $2 billion worth of food industry company's products annually and consists of eight separate distribution centres around New Zealand including Auckland, Christchurch, Tauranga and Bluff.

Eskimo will retain its international freight forwarding business Eskimo International Logistics Limited under managing director Jeremy Silva.

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