Americold and EQT form joint venture for cold storage
Americold Realty Trust announced on Thursday that it 'has formed a joint... venture... with investment firm EQT Active Core Infrastructure.... fund. This joint venture will.. focus on cold storage.. warehouses in.. North America.
Under the deal, the temperature-controlled warehouse operator will contribute 12 cold storage facilities to the joint venture with a total value of more than $1.3 billion ?at inception. Americold expects to get about $1.1 billion in cash, which will be used to pay off its debt.
Americold Realty Trust shares rose by more than 3% during premarket trading.
Demand for cold-storage space is rising as ?food companies and retailers ?look to strengthen supply chains and handle higher volumes of fresh and frozen goods, making temperature-controlled logistics an increasingly critical part of North America's food infrastructure.
The joint venture will be one of the largest cold storage platforms in North America. EQT holds a 70% share, and Americold a 30% stake, with Americold managing daily operations.
The transaction should close by the third quarter of 2026. This is subject to?approvals from regulatory authorities and other closing conditions.
Americold Realty Trust forecasts 2026 'adjusted fund from operations' between $1.20 - $1.30 a share, which is above Wall Street estimates of 92c, according to LSEG data. Apratim Sarkar, Bengaluru (reporting) and Leroy Leo (editing)
(source: Reuters)
