Source: The Canadian Press

Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX:MFC) and the private markets investment arm of Ontario’s OPTrust are part of a group that plans to invest up to $2.1 billion in energy infrastructure and gas storage and delivery assets in the United States.

Manulife, though its John Hancock subsidiary, will invest up to $450 million and OPTrust Private Markets Group will invest up to $400 million in two real estate investment trusts.

One of the trusts will be Electric Infrastructure Alliance of America (EIAA) and the other will be Gas Infrastructure Alliance of America (GIAA).

Subsidiaries of Texas-based Hunt Power will manage the real-estate trusts and will invest up to $322.5 million in cash and assets, while Japan’s Marubeni Corp. will invest up to $500 million and TIAA-CREF will invest up to $450 million.

As part of the deal, the trusts will acquire an interest in Sharyland Distribution and Transmission Services, an affiliate of Hunt Power, that will own five line segments and four substations that have been proposed.

Applications for regulatory approval have been filed with the Public Utility Commission of Texas for all five segments, with final decisions expected by May 2011 with construction to be completed in 2013.

OPTrust administers the OPSEU Pension Plan, which has more than 82,000 members and retirees. The Ontario Public Service Employees Union is one of Canada’s largest public-sector labour groups.