Infrastructure investment group, HICL, has agreed to acquire a further 6.65% interest in Cross London Trains (XLT) for approximately £52m.

The deal will take HICL’s total economic interest in XLT to 13.13%.

XLT owns and originally delivered a fleet of 700 electric trains operating on the Thameslink passenger rail route, covering the North-South London commuter axis and serving hubs including St Pancras International, Gatwick Airport, and Luton Airport.

The fleet was initially leased in 2016 under a 20-year availability contract with a revenue underpin from the Secretary of State for Transport. At the end of this period, ownership will remain with shareholders, and the fleet is expected to be re-leased on commercial terms.

HICL revealed it would fund its latest investment from the proceeds of recently completed disposals, and said it is expecting completion of the transaction before the end of June, subject to customary third-party consents.

Chair of HICL, Mike Bane, said: “This investment demonstrates the board’s disciplined and balanced approach to capital deployment.

“Increasing our stake in XLT enhances HICL’s governance position in a high quality, operational asset and supports long term NAV per share growth. The transaction is also expected to deliver compelling NAV accretion and incremental income.”

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