CPDQ and Ardian Announce Closing of Acquisition of Significant Equity Interest in Alvest

MONTREAL, February 1, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a leading institutional asset manager, and Ardian, an independent private investment company, have completed the acquisition of a significant stake in Alvest, the global leader in the development, production, distribution and support of airport Ground Support Equipment (GSE). Alvest's customers, including passenger airlines, cargo airlines, ground handlers and airport authorities, will benefit from this investment through Alvest's enhanced capacity to bring new and innovative solutions to the market. The investment will also contribute to Alvest's efforts to continue building its global footprint.

As a leader within the growing and evolving GSE sector, Alvest is well positioned to lead the aviation industry's technological and environmental shift toward reducing its emissions on the tarmac. Alvest's Taxibot, a hybrid taxiing vehicle and the only certified green-taxiing solution in the world, is uniquely catering to the industry's challenge to reduce CO₂ emissions. By taxiing aircraft without using its jet engines, Taxibot significantly reduces fuel burn and emissions of flights while lowering airliners' dependence on fossil fuels. Alvest is also bringing a complete range of electric equipment to market, including driverless vehicles, allowing airports to go greener.

Jean-Marie Fulconis, CEO of Alvest said: "Our team is very proud to partner with CDPQ and Ardian, which have committed to support Alvest's projects and development strategy. This powerful long-term backing will allow us to continue to make substantial investments in new technologies and products, and to bring our support and green contribution to our customers, and the aviation industry, to the next level."

Stéphane Etroy, Executive Vice-President and Head of Private Equity, CDPQ, said: "Alvest is the right fit for us. Its airport equipment technology and services contribute to the aviation industry's shift toward a lower-carbon future and are strongly aligned with our climate change strategy. More broadly, Alvest is a leader in all its main business lines internationally and has a resilient, diversified and well-balanced business model in a growing market. Alongside Alvest's experienced management team and our partners, we look forward to participating in the company's future growth in new and existing markets."

Dominique Gaillard, Head of Ardian Direct Funds added: "This transaction marks the second time that we have invested in Alvest, having been shareholders from 2006 to 2013. With our Ardian Co-Investment team, we are delighted to again support the company and the strong management team led by Jean-Marie Fulconis in this new phase of its development."

Alvest's history has been marked by successful research and development investment, continuous market share gains within the strategic and consolidating GSE sector, and a strong long-term financial performance that have strengthened its leadership position over several decades. As part of this transaction, Alvest's management team and Sagard are reinvesting to continue supporting its future growth.

ABOUT CAISSE DE DÉPÔT ET PLACEMENT DU QUÉBEC 

Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is a long-term institutional investor that manages funds primarily for public and parapublic pension and insurance plans. As at June 30, 2017, it held CAD$286.5 billion in net assets. As one of Canada's leading institutional fund managers, CDPQ invests globally in major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. For more information, visit cdpq.com, follow us on Twitter @LaCDPQ or consult our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.

ABOUT ARDIAN 

Ardian is a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$66bn managed or advised in Europe, North America and Asia. The company is majority-owned by its employees. It keeps entrepreneurship at its heart and focuses on delivering excellent investment performance to its global investor base. Through its commitment to shared outcomes for all stakeholders, Ardian's activities fuel individual, corporate and economic growth around the world. Holding close its core values of excellence, loyalty and entrepreneurship, Ardian maintains a truly global network, with more than 480 employees working from twelve offices across Europe (Frankfurt, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Zurich), North America (New York, San Francisco) and Asia (Beijing, Singapore). It manages funds on behalf of 610 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Funds of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.

For more information

CDPQ
Canada
Jean-Benoît Houde
Senior Advisor
Media and Public Relations
+1-514-847-5493
+1-514-652-4344
jbhoude@cdpq.com

International
CESALTINE GREGORIO
Senior Advisory Director
Global Media Relations
+1-212-596-6314
+1-347-241-3248
cgregorio@cdpq.com

Ardian
SIMON ZAKS
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+33-1-53-70-74-63
szaks@image7.fr

ANNE-CHARLOTTE CREAC'H
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+33-1-53-70-94-21
accreach@image7.fr