The largest shareholder in Infratil is reducing its stake in the infrastructure investor.
Utilico Investments sold 15 million shares to an unnamed US institutional shareholder for $1.80 each.
It has agreed to sell another 15 million shares to Lloyd Morrison's Morrison and Co for $1.85 each, though the Takeovers Code requires shareholders to approve the deal at the company's annual meeting next month.
If approved, Morrison and Co's stake in Infratil would rise from 9.4% to 12% while Utilco's shareholding will fall from 18.-6% to 13.7%.
Infratil chief executive Marko Bogoievski says the company has been trying to diversify its funding base and lift its profile among international investors and it is good to have a significant new offshore investor.
The company would be 77% New Zealand owned.
