Levine Leichtman Sells Rail Operator to London PE Firm

Beverly Hills-based private equity firm Levine Leichtman Capital Partners has sold Regional Rail, a Kennett Square, Pa.-based short-line railroad operator, to London-based private equity firm 3i Group.

Regional Rail, formed in 2007, operates 155 miles of track connecting with larger rail networks in Delaware, New York and Pennsylvania.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Toronto-based BMO Capital Markets served as financial adviser, and Detroit-based Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn served as legal adviser to Regional Rail in connection with the sale.

Regional Rail services a broad range of shippers in the agriculture, lumber, energy and metal products businesses. The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Diamondback Signal, provides engineering, construction and maintenance for highway-rail crossings throughout the United States.

Levine Leichtman manages roughly $10.5 billion in institutional capital and has completed a handful of portfolio deals so far this year. In March, the firm sold another portfolio company, Display Holding Co. Inc.

Levine Leichtman also acquired passenger aircraft safety testing firm SK AeroSafety in January.

Finance reporter Pat Maio can be reached at pmaio@labusinessjournal.com or (323) 556-8329.

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