Posted on February 11, 2026
Two major Canadian investors are taking steps to sell off their stakes in Associated British Ports (ABP).
The Financial Times, citing people familiar with the situation, said Morgan Stanley had been appointed to explore a sale. The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) own 33.88% and 30% respectively.
The newspaper also reported Hermes, which owns another 6.12%, may sell down as well.
It quoted one source as saying a deal may come in the second half of this year, although discussions are still at an early stage.
ABP has 21 ports around the UK. It accounts for one quarter of all ports industry volumes and supports more than half the UK’s offshore wind plans.
OMERS was part of the initial acquisition of ABP in 2006, along with Goldman Sachs.
CPPIB and Hermes bought into ABP in 2015, with an initial £1.6 billion investment. CPPIB went on to increase this joint ownership position to 33.88% with another payment of £250 million.
CPPIB said its infrastructure investments delivered a net return of 9.4% in the 2025 fiscal year. It noted gains in various areas, including port services in the UK.
Its data centre business did even better, though, providing “double-digit returns”.
Other investors in ABP are Singapore’s GIC with 20% and Kuwait’s Wren House Investments with 10%.
Enabling and trading
In its most recent results, ABP reported revenue of £409.5 million for the first six months of 2025, up 6.5% year on year. Consolidated EBITDA was also up, at £234.4m, an increase of 8.6%.
ABP has set out a particular focus on growth areas that support the UK’s energy transition. It has twin missions of ‘keeping Britain trading’ and ‘enabling the energy transition’.
It has singled out Port Talbot as being of particular interest, to support floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea. Plans could include sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), onshore wind turbine manufacturing, hydrogen and carbon capture.
ABP is also working on the Immingham green energy terminal (IGET) project. It signed on to early agreements on using this as a transhipment point for CO2, linked to the Viking cluster.
