VantaCore Partners has agreed an acquisition financing package consisting of USD100m of equity funding from Trilantic Capital Partners and a USD15m acquisition facility from PNC.
PNC has also provided VantaCore with a USD27m senior secured credit facility.
"We are excited about this significant new source of acquisition financing and adding these two great new partners to our team," says Colin Oerton, VantaCore’s chief executive officer. "These financings provide us with the capital to continue our strategy of purchasing high quality aggregate businesses in the US, following the three successful acquisitions that we have made in Tennessee and Louisiana since mid-2007. We look forward to working with Trilantic and are also pleased that PNC Bank has decided to not only support our existing business but to also fund our growth plans. PNC’s facility will be used to refinance our existing senior debt, and provide USD15m to fund future investments."
Chris Manning, on behalf of Trilantic, adds: "VantaCore represents an exciting opportunity for us combining three attractive characteristics of an excellent management team, solid industry fundamentals and a well-run operating business with substantial growth prospects. We believe that this is an excellent time to be making this investment and are pleased to provide VantaCore with the funding which will enable them to take advantage of the significant expansion opportunities in its industry including acquisitions of, and investments in other aggregate companies as well as internal growth projects."
VantaCore is a private company focused on acquiring competitively advantaged aggregate and related businesses in the domestic US market. With approximately 150 employees, its operations consist of an integrated limestone quarry (with permitted surface reserves of about 49 million tons), a dock facility, two asphalt plants and a commercial asphalt lay down business located in Clarksville, Tennessee, and a sand and gravel business (with approximately 67 million tons of sand and gravel reserves) located near Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Management plans to continue its strategy of growing primarily through acquisition.
To date, VantaCore has been financed by Kayne Anderson Energy Development Company, Tortoise Capital Resources and Hartz Capital Investments all of which are retaining their equity interest in the company.
