Babcock takes Forth Ports slice ahead of mooted takeover

<p>Babcock &#38 Brown yesterday (Sunday, January 13) confirmed that one of its subsidiaries had acquired almost 9m shares in the UK’s only listed ports operator, Forth Ports PLC, for $3.8bn.</p> <p>Babcock &#38 Brown European Infrastructure Fund (BBEIF) and parent company Babcock and Brown Limited now claims to hold 20.4% of the ports operator’s shares.</p> <p>Babcock is said to be considering a full takeover of Forth Ports, which owns seven British ports.</p> <p>Meanwhile, Babcock and Brown Infrastructure (BBI) has welcomed Stephen O’Donnell’s final report on the Goonyella coal chain, released last week.</p> <p>BBI rejected claims that it had failed to coordinate port expansion with Queensland Rail’s upgrades.</p> <p>BBI chief operating officer transport Jeff Pollock said a recommendation to appoint a coordinator for the Goonyella would require the full support of stakeholders.</p> <p>Townsville Port Authority chairman Ross Dunning has been appointed coordinator of the coal chain, which has been hit by chronic infrastructure problems that have caused lengthy queues at Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal. </p> <br />