EMAIL DETAILS

PORTFOLIO UPDATES AND PRESS CLIPS

AIRVANA<http://www.airvana.com/>


The Hill 3/19

Bottom Line<http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/lobbying-hires/216859-bottom-line>

Downey McGrath Group Inc. has been hired by Airvana Inc., a Chelmsford, Mass., mobile broadband network provider, to lobby on “education and outreach activities on commercial issues of importance to Airvana and the Massachusetts high-tech marketplace,” according to lobbying disclosure records. Former Reps. Tom Downey (D-N.Y.) and Ray McGrath (R-N.Y.) are lobbying for the company.


BUSCH ENTERTAINMENT


The Deal 3/16
In hot debt market, buyout shops harvest dividends<http://www.thedeal.com/content/private-equity/in-hot-debt-market-buyout-shops-harvest-dividends.php>

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment Inc. is adding on $500 million to its existing $844 million term loan B to pay a $500 million distribution to sponsor Blackstone Group LP… Additionally, the source said interest expense -- after a dividend -- will actually be lower than at the time of the $2.4 billion buyout of SeaWorld, when Blackstone injected $975 million in equity.


Orlando Sentinel 3/20
SeaWorld bounces back in big way<http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2012-03-20/business/os-seaworld-killer-whale-construction-20120320_1_seaworld-parks-president-seaworld-orlando-aquatica>

The company's top executive told the Orlando Sentinel on Tuesday that attendance across the chain climbed 5.3 percent in 2011 — to about 23.6 million visitors in all. It is the company's first year-over-year increase since 2008, when it opened Aquatica<http://www.orlandosentinel.com/topic/PLTRA0000004.topic>, the Orlando water park.


Kirotv.com 3/21
SeaWorld sees record attendance in 2011<http://www.kirotv.com/news/ap/travel/seaworld-sees-record-attendance-in-2011/nLYkZ/>

The newspaper company recently negotiated new loan terms with banks which will allow it to spend an additional $65 million on safety improvement at parks in Orlando, San Diego and San Antonio.

ENERGY FUTURE HOLDINGS<http://www.energyfutureholdings.com>


Star-Telegram 3/15

Smith, White: Time to pull the plug on Energy Future Holdings' coal-fired power plants in Texas<http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/03/15/3813300/smith-white-time-to-pull-the-plug.html>

For more than 20 years the EPA worked on the recently announced rules to reduce pollution from power plants. In order to meet the lower emissions limits, EFH estimates it will have to spend $1.5 billion on pollution controls. The Sierra Club estimates those controls could cost as much as $3.6 billion.


Daily Finance 3/19
Is Private Equity Good for America?<http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/03/19/is-private-equity-good-for-america/>

KKR and Goldman Sachs' monster TXU deal spawned a company that's now teetering on the brink of insolvency.


Burntorange Report 3/20
Texas Utility's Fight With EPA Reveals A Company In Crisis And Serious Flaws With Deregulation<http://www.burntorangereport.com/diary/12021/texas-utilitys-fight-with-epa-reveals-a-company-in-crisis-and-serious-flaws-with-deregulation>

The largest non-regulated generator of power in Texas, Luminant, and its parent company, Energy Future Holdings, are now blaming the Environmental Protection Agency’s Cross-State Air Pollution Rule<http://www.epa.gov/region6/region-6/tx/luminant.html> for idling four huge coal-fired electric plants the very week an arctic cold front pushed energy consumption in the state to the limit. It is no surprise that Republican politicians like Rick Perry, and heir-to-the-throne, Greg Abbott, have jumped to Luminant’s defense<https://www.oag.state.tx.us/oagnews/release.php?id=3872>.

FISKER AUTOMOTIVE<http://www.fiskerautomotive.com/en-us>


BusinessWeek 3/15
Fisker to Fix Software That Led to Consumer Reports Failure<http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-03-15/fisker-to-fix-software-flaw-that-led-to-consumer-reports-failure&ct=ga&cad=CAEQAxgAIAAoATACOAJAsp6q-wRIAVAAWABiBWVuLVVT&cd=BEYfqS2_pQ4&usg=AFQjCNEFk2hJEf27dkTxPlIBFaevfj48zA>

Fisker Automotive Inc., the maker of plug-in luxury sports cars, said it's developing a software fix for a problem that led its Karma model to shut down during testing by Consumer Reports.


MarketWatch (press release) 3/21
Now Open: Fisker Automotive Drives a Responsible and Stylish Alternative Lifestyle Into Shops at Don Mills<http://www.marketwatch.com/story/now-open-fisker-automotive-drives-a-responsible-and-stylish-alternative-lifestyle-into-shops-at-don-mills-2012-03-21>


MLive.com 3/16
Fisker Automotive defends $100000 Karma in wake of breakdown; working on a fix<http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.mlive.com/auto/index.ssf/2012/03/fisker_automotive_defends_1000.html&ct=ga&cad=CAEQAxgAIAAoATABOAFAsp6q-wRIAVAAWABiBWVuLVVT&cd=BEYfqS2_pQ4&usg=AFQjCNEsg_mgqzJfQh_J_wUWA9Y3Jq7Nvw>
In a statement on the California-based luxury electric car manufacturer’s website, newly appointed CEO Tom LaSorda <http://www.mlive.com/auto/index.ssf/2012/02/ex-chrysler_gm_exec_to_lead_fi.html> said even though the Fisker Karma performed “exactly how it was designed to” when a problem is detected, a team of engineers are analyzing the vehicle from top-to-bottom.


Bloomberg 3/22
Porsche’s $116,000 Rival Fisker Pushes Battery Power to Limits<http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-03-22/porsche-s-116-000-rival-fisker-pushes-battery-power-to-limits>
As a luxury sports sedan, the Karma (starting at $103,000) swims with slick sharks. Competitors include the Porsche Panamera S Hybrid ($96,000), the BMW (BMW) ActiveHybrid 750i ($97,900), the $130,800 Maserati Quattroporte and even the $210,000-plus Aston Martin Rapide.


HEALTHSCOPE<http://www.healthscope.com.au/info/general/Home/get/0/0/>


Private Equity Hub 3/20
Carlyle's Australia Focus is Buyouts<http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.pehub.com/141543/carlyles-australia-focus-is-buyouts/&ct=ga&cad=CAEQAxgBIAAoATAAOABA4p6q-wRIAVgBYgVlbi1VUw&cd=uovEs_OtUGE&usg=AFQjCNFxrDa7ab56ozGjKU02trwSDAunrg>

Carlyle jointly owns two of Australia’s largest privately owned firms — equipment hire firm Coates and hospital operator Healthscope — and has said it is looking for more deals.


The Australian 3/21
Carlyle unlikely to follow rivals into retail<http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/wall-street-journal/carlyle-unlikely-to-follow-rivals-into-retail/story-fnay3vxj-1226305663126&ct=ga&cad=CAEQAxgBIAAoATABOAFA4p6q-wRIAVgBYgVlbi1VUw&cd=uovEs_OtUGE&usg=AFQjCNECltX1zTasSEewHemDqEcMFrtSPg>

PRIVATE equity heavyweights KKR and TPG may have made a foray into the Australian retail sector this year, but it's unlikely the Carlyle Group will follow suit…In Australia, Carlyle targets acquisitions with enterprise values of more than $400 million.

VIET THAI INTERNATIONAL


VietNamNet Bridge 3/21
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 21/3<http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://english.vietnamnet.vn/en/business/20155/business-in-brief-21-3.html&ct=ga&cad=CAEQAxgBIAAoATAAOABAiZ-q-wRIAVAAWABiBWVuLVVT&cd=J9bG5RiV__M&usg=AFQjCNGn0qE2Nf4p0Hwta3pjl5VGV-P35A>

Most of the recent M&A deals in Vietnam have been carried out by foreign firms buying into local companies. Recently, … Jollibee Foods Corp. reached an agreement with Viet Thai International (VTI) to acquire the majority stake of Highland coffee businesses in Vietnam.

TEKELEC


Comunications Technology 3/16

LTE Overload – It’s Not The Data, It’s The Signaling<http://www.cable360.net/ct/51163.html>

According to Doug Suriano, CTO at Tekelec, the iPad 3 is the first iconic LTE device that will be widely available. He believes that, by virtue of its popularity, features and applications, it will escalate the volume of network signaling on LTE networks to a level much higher than operators originally had anticipated.

PRIVATE EQUTY


FT 3/18

Carlyle poaches senior Lloyds banker<http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/a154d9e8-70ee-11e1-a7f1-00144feab49a.html#axzz1pobmznFr>

The US private equity group, which is looking to go public in the second quarter, poached Alexander Pietruska from Lloyds to set up a Europe, Middle East and Africa team for its primarily US-focused financial services group, people close to the situation said.

WSJ 3/19

Biotech Funding Gets Harder to Find<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052970203961204577267814201399918.html?KEYWORDS=%22private+equity%22>

Venture capitalists invested a total of $3.92 billion last year in biotechs of all stages, well below the $6.17 billion peak in 2007, according to VentureSource. And shares in biotechs that went public last year averaged 29% less than their expected midpoint offering price, according to investment bank Needham & Co. Some venture capitalists have stopped funding new biotech altogether.


Chicago Tribune 3/20
Bono's private equity firm on tour for $1 billion<http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sns-rt-us-bono-private-equitybre82j1ch-20120320,0,3001973.story>

The private equity group co-founded by Irish rock star Bono has approached investors seeking $1 billion for its second fund, buoyed by its success with investments in Facebook<http://www.chicagotribune.com/topic/arts-culture/computer-networking-internet/social-media/facebook-ORCRP006023.topic> Inc and Yelp Inc, a person familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.


FT 3/20
Latin America at $10.3bn record for fundraising<http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/de722d26-72b0-11e1-ae73-00144feab49a.html>

The amount raised for Latin America reached $10.3bn, up 27 per cent on 2010 which was also a record, with Brazil-dedicated funds accounting for the bulk of the total at $8.1bn, according to figures from the Latin American Private Equity & Venture Capital Association.


WSJ Press release 3/20

Emerging Markets Private Equity Fundraising Increases by 64%--Highest Level in Three Years<http://www.marketwatch.com/story/emerging-markets-private-equity-fundraising-increases-by-64-highest-level-in-three-years-2012-03-20>

Emerging markets funds continue to capture a larger slice of the global private equity (PE) fundraising pool, reaching 15% of new commitments globally in 2011, up from 11% in 2010.


Led by China and Brazil, fundraising for emerging markets PE in 2011 grew by 64% year on year, reaching a 3-year high of US$38.6 billion, according to the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA).


In the same year, 876 private equity and venture capital deals valued at US$26.9 billion were completed in the emerging markets, representing 11% of invested PE capital globally.


FT 3/20

Apax raises €4.3bn in 10 months<http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5a55d966-7201-11e1-90b5-00144feab49a.html>

Apax Partners has raised €4.3bn ($5.6bn) from investors within 10 months in the largest first close of a private equity fund since the height of the financial crisis more than three years ago. But the final size is expected to be a fifth smaller than the last fund raised by Apax.


FT 3/21

Lloyds to sell buyout loans to Bain unit<http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4e41dbd4-736e-11e1-94ba-00144feab49a.html>
Lloyds Banking Group<http://markets.ft.com/tearsheets/performance.asp?s=uk:LLOY> has stepped up efforts to shrink its balance sheet by agreeing to sell a £500m portfolio of mostly UK leveraged loans for private equity buyouts to the debt investment arm of Bain Capital, according to people familiar with the matter.


Reuters 3/21

Wall Street mostly slips, but tech keeps S&P near 4-year highs<http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/22/us-markets-stocks-idUSBRE82I0CT20120322>

Stocks mostly fell on Wednesday, weighed by the energy services sector, but gains in technology shares buoyed the Nasdaq<http://www.reuters.com/finance/markets/index?symbol=us!comp> and helped keep the S&P 500 near four-year highs.


WSJ 3/21

J.P. Morgan to Invest in China Firm<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052702303812904577294330820015356.html?KEYWORDS=%22private+equity%22>

J.P. Morgan Chase<http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=JPM> & Co. agreed to buy a 19.9% stake in a Chinese trust company, said a person familiar with the situation.