Motorway services giant Roadchef could be about to change hands for up to £1billion.
City sources said its owner – a French infrastructure and private equity firm called Antin – has appointed advisers from Australian investment bank Macquarie to find a buyer for the business.
Roadchef is the third largest motorway service area operator in the UK after Welcome Break and Moto. It runs around 30 service stations across Britain.
Changing hands?: Roadchef is the third largest motorway service area operator in the UK after Welcome Break and Moto
The company was originally set up in the early 1970s by Lindley Catering Investments and Galleon World Travel.
Roadchef then grew through a series of takeover deals, including the acquisition of Take A Break and Blue Boar, the fourth largest operator of service stations in Britain.
Antin bought Roadchef – where motorists can refuel, use the toilets and buy food from brands ranging from McDonald’s to Leon and Krispy Kreme – for £153million in 2014.
The business has grown substantially since then, with the company forecast to generate operating profits of around £50million in 2022.
The sale of Roadchef comes shortly after Antin floated on the Euronext Paris stock exchange, with the company raising around €550 million from the listing.
The company runs four funds that invest in infrastructure in Europe and North America, with a focus on energy, the environment, telecommunications and transportation.
