In a joint statement released Wednesday, both parties said the signing of definitive agreements marks the next chapter for ProTen, which has been owned by Aware Super since 2018.
During that time, Aware’s infrastructure team expanded ProTen’s operations nationally and reportedly grew its property portfolio fourfold.
ProTen specialises in developing, owning and operating farm infrastructure for the Australian poultry supply chain and manages more than 700 poultry sheds across over 60 farms in key agricultural regions nationwide.
“Our investment in ProTen is a unique opportunity to acquire a high-quality agricultural infrastructure asset, supported by availability-based long-term contracts that plays an essential role in the food supply chain,” said Andrew Jennings, managing director and head of Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) Infrastructure, KKR.
KKR’s investment in ProTen will be made through its Asia-Pacific Infrastructure Investors II Fund and is aimed at supporting ProTen’s continued growth and operational excellence within the poultry sector.
Jennings added that KKR has been actively monitoring the agricultural infrastructure space as a high-conviction thematic.
“We are impressed by the quality of ProTen’s assets, its long-term contractual relationships with its customers and the favourable dynamics within the poultry industry,” he said.
“As demand for sustainable protein and resilient food supply increases in Australia, we believe ProTen is well placed for continued growth.”
This deal represents KKR’s latest infrastructure acquisition in the Australia-New Zealand region, after the firm recently acquired Zenith Energy, a leading Australian independent power producer, in a deal valued at over $2 billion.
Also commenting on the deal, Jiren Zhou, Aware Super’s portfolio manager - infrastructure, said: “This is an excellent example of how Aware Super’s disciplined and long-term approach has strengthened the fund’s high quality, diversified infrastructure portfolio, which currently has more than AU$20 billion invested globally.”
Since 2019, KKR’s Asia-Pacific infrastructure platform has grown to around US$13 billion in assets under management. Aside from Zenith Energy, KKR’s past investments in the Australia-New Zealand region include Queensland Airports Limited, Spark Infrastructure, and Ritchies Transport.
KKR confirmed the ProTen transaction is expected to close later in 2025, subject to regulatory approvals.
