ARM-Harith Infrastructure Fund Raises $91m

Goddy Egene

ARM-Harith Infrastructure Investment Ltd (ARMHIIL), a Joint Venture between Asset & Resource Management Company Ltd (ARM) and Harith General Partners (Pty) Ltd (Harith) of South Africa, has announced first close of the indigenously developed and managed

ARM-Harith Infrastructure Fund (ARMHIF) floated by ARM-Harith Infrastructure Investment Ltd (ARMHIIL), which is a joint venture between Asset & Resource (ARM) Management Company Limited, Nigeria and Harith General Partners (Pty) Ltd (Harith) of South Africa, raised $91 million during the first close of the indigenously developed and managed fund.

A pioneering $250 million closed-ended specialist PE Infrastructure Fund, ARMHIF is structured in line with international best practice and core investment focus is on transportation, energy, and utilities in West Africa, and primarily Nigeria.

The fund managers said a statement last Friday that total commitments stood at $91 million. According to them, ARM, the lead sponsor and main investor in ARMHIF, committed S$25 million to the fund. Harith, the co-sponsor committed a matching $25 million. The African Development Bank (AfDB), playing a key role as catalyst for investment by the limited partners in the fund, committed $20 million. Nigerian Pension Funds, Chevron CPFA, Progress Trust CPFA, and Total E&P CPFA, also made commitments to the fund.

The Managing Director/ CEO, ARMHIIL, Opuiyo Oforiokuma, ARMHIF is the first in a series of infrastructure funds that they plan to raise over time, providing much needed long term equity capital for funding infrastructure in Nigeria and West Africa.

“We see viable investment opportunities in our pipeline and believe good returns can be generated through our selective and skillful deployment of capital to infrastructure projects. ARMHIF is a new and investible infrastructure product for Sub-Saharan Africa, and is suitable for local and international investors alike. Having a AAA-rated international organisation like the AfDB in our investor group, and Nigerian pension funds gaining infrastructure exposure for the first time via our Fund, is a solid start,” Oforiokuma said.

Speaking in the vein, CEO of Harith Gereral Partners, Tshepo Mahloele, said that he was proud to be associated with ARM in its mission to contribute to the broader development of West Africa and Nigeria in particular.