Mumbai-based Neo Asset Management is beefing up its infrastructure team as it aims to establish two investment platforms, a senior official told Infralogic.

One of these will be dedicated to the highways sector and the other to renewables, Managing Director and Operating Partner of Neo’s infrastructure business, Neeraj Sanghi said.

The highways platform will likely be an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT), which he wants to launch within about two years, he said. Sanghi joined Neo in July from Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR).

Based in Mumbai, Sanghi was CEO for eight years at Highway Concessions One, which KKR acquired from Global Infrastructure Partners in 2021. The platform had seven assets.

Since then, KKR has acquired four assets from Macquarie, four from HG Infra Engineering, one from Navayuga Engineering, announced another deal for 11 assets from PNC Infratech, as well as established a roads infrastructure trust.

“I’m looking to replicate what I did earlier, here at Neo,” Sanghi said.

Neo plans to initially hold four to six assets in its planned roads InvIT, giving it an enterprise value of about INR 40bn (USD 475m) to INR 50bn (USD 595m), he said.

He hasn’t decided whether the trust will also hold solar assets but Neo is in talks to acquire about 300 MW of operational capacity. Sanghi did not provide further details on the targets, citing confidentiality.

Neo is also in discussions to acquire two highway projects that were built in the hybrid annuity model, he said without elaborating.

Infralogic reported in January this year that Neo acquired its first highway asset – the 27km Himalyan Expressway toll road – for INR 800m after creditors took control and invited bids to replace existing concessionaire Jaiprakash Associates.

Fundraising and expansion
The roads trust will be funded mostly from Neo’s first infrastructure fund, which is currently in the midst of capital raising, said Sanghi, adding that it has raised INR 15bn of its INR 20bn target so far.

The Neo Infrastructure Income Opportunities Fund achieved first close at the end of September last year, raising INR 6bn. Neo Asset expects a final close in December this year.

A majority of the capital raised will be deployed for the roads platform, said Sanghi. Some more capital will be made available from a second fund that will be launched later.

The team of about eight people will be increased to about 30-35 staff in about eight to nine months.

He would like to have a team of up to 60 people once the second fundraise process is launched, catering to Neo’s infrastructure investment business.

Apart from Sanghi, Neo hired Parvez Umrigar in April this year as senior advisor in its infrastructure team. Umrigar was formerly managing director and CEO of Peak Infrastructure, Brookfield’s Indian roads investment platform, which Brookfield sold to the Canada Pension Plan Board-backed Interise Trust.

Neo Asset Management was set up in 2021 by Nitin Jain, former CEO of Edelweiss Wealth Management, and Hemant Daga, former CEO of Edelweiss Asset Management.

Neo Asset Management is the asset management arm of Neo Wealth & Asset Management, providing credit and regular income solutions across various asset classes in India, private credit, real assets and core credit.