DigitalBridge – PLUS ES smart metering division

WA-10034

DB Grid 1 Pty Ltd as trustee for DB Grid AU Bid Trust, a special purpose vehicle which is an indirect subsidiary of DigitalBridge Partners III, LP, proposes to acquire 100% of the contestable smart metering division of PLUS ES by way of a sale by the vendors of their interests in the partner entities that form PLUS ES (being 5 unit trusts and their respective corporate trustee companies) pursuant to a Securities Sale and Purchase Deed (the **Acquisition**). DigitalBridge Partners III, LP is an investment fund managed by an affiliate of DigitalBridge Group, Inc. DigitalBridge is a dedicated, global-scale digital infrastructure investment company headquartered in Florida, United States, that primarily invests, directly and through its managed funds and their portfolio companies, in 5 key areas: data centres, cell towers, fibre networks, small cell; and edge infrastructure. PLUS ES is an Australian metering business that is owned by a partnership between the NSW Government, a consortium of IFM Investors, APG Asset Management and AustralianSuper. PLUS ES is a group of entities which is comprised of the following divisions: * the contestable smart metering division which delivers contestable smart metering services to retailers * the regulated metering division which delivers regulated electricity metering services for networks; and * the infrastructure services division which provides community battery energy storage systems, electrical vehicle charging infrastructure and infrastructure services to commercial customers. The Acquisition will only include the contestable smart metering division, with the regulated metering and infrastructure services divisions to be transferred out of PLUS ES via a restructure prior to completion of the Acquisition. Relevantly, PLUS ES is an Australian Metering Services Provider operating across the east coast of Australia that co-ordinates all metering services for smart meters, including provision, installation, maintenance, data collection and data delivery. PLUS ES provides Metering Co-ordinator, Metering Provider and Metering Data Provider services to residential customers and commercial and industrial operators, including energy retailers, embedded network operators and energy network businesses. PLUS ES provides these services under end-to-end service agreements with energy retailers.