Brookfield Infrastructure explores $5 billion sale of Canadian pipeline operator NorthRiver, sources say

Rising demand for energy infrastructure assets from both strategic and financial buyers has pushed up valuations and encouraged some owners to explore sales of businesses they have held for several years.

On an April 29 earnings call, Chief Executive Sam Pollock said Brookfield Infrastructure was weighing whether to pursue further growth opportunities at NorthRiver or take advantage of what he described as a “pretty constructive” market for midstream businesses.

Energy infrastructure assets have attracted strong interest from private equity firms, pension funds and infrastructure investors seeking stable cash flows, while publicly traded midstream companies have also looked to expand their networks.

In recent years, Canada’s cautious approach to approving new oil and gas pipelines, particularly large long-distance projects, has limited the supply of new infrastructure and supported valuations for existing midstream assets. While the environment has changed somewhat under the current administration of Mark Carney, large-scale pipeline systems remain difficult to replicate.