Suntex Marina Investors has established a new joint venture that plans to acquire more than $1.25bn worth of marina property in the United States.

The firm, one of the largest marina owners in the US, has partnered with Centerbridge Partners and other Centerbridge-affiliated funds and global institutional investors, according to a statement released on Wednesday (3 April 2024).

Suntex says these funds will be used to support new acquisitions and capital improvements at newly acquired facilities, as well as for several development projects across the United States.

The day-to-day operations of the joint venture will be managed by Suntex, for which it will receive customary fees. The transaction further expands Suntex’s partnership with private equity firm Centerbridge, which helped recapitalise the company in 2021.

In 2022, Centerbridge Partners paid US$400m for marina management company Westrec, which was absorbed into Suntex Marinas.

In connection with the transaction, the Joint Venture also closed on a revolving credit facility of up to $600m, which was led by Wells Fargo Bank and included Bank of America, Truist Bank, BMO Bank and First Horizon Bank.

“The marina industry has shown consistently strong fundamentals for many years, as enthusiasts have invested in more and bigger boats while the availability of high-quality marinas and boat storage remains scarce,” says William Rahm, chairman of Suntex Marinas and global head of Real Estate at Centerbridge Partners, in a statement.

Matt Dabrowski, senior managing director at Centerbridge Partners, adds: “Suntex is extremely well positioned to capitalise on tailwinds in the marina and broader leisure and storage markets, and we look forward to building on our partnership to bring the company’s best-in-class model to even more marinas across the US.”

Since 2021, Suntex has continued to grow its portfolio of marinas. The Suntex portfolio currently includes marinas located in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee and Virginia.

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