Brookfield Asset Management is looking to cash out six years after establishing a platform for its toll road assets. According to people familiar with the situation, the Canadian asset manager plans to sell Peak Infrastructure for $1.2 billion inclusive of debt to profit from the current valuation uptick in similar assets. Peak Infrastructure has five road assets under its control. Brookfield's management has begun talks with several investment bankers, and a formal mandate will be issued within the next week. According to the sources, the formal sale process will begin in the middle of October. Brookfield Asset Management is one of the largest asset managers in the world. In April and May, the second wave of the Covid pandemic wreaked havoc on toll collections. According to ICRA's calculations, tolls dropped by about 10% in April and nearly 30% in May. Traffic on highways improved, reaching 90% of pre-Covid levels and surpassing it in subsequent months. As a result, the government has chosen the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to lead the government's recently announced asset monetisation initiative. Over the next two years, it plans to raise Rs 30,000 to 40,000 crore by selling and leasing back operational stretches. The Mumbai Nashik Expressway, Simhapuri Expressway, Rayalseema Expressway, Gorakhpur Infrastructure Co., and Kosi Bridge Infrastructure Co. are among Peak Infrastructure's toll roads that are under long-term concession agreements with NHAI. Peak was formed following the purchase of road assets from Gammon India. Brookfield made its first foray into the road business in August 2015, when it purchased six projects from Gammon. It bought two road assets from Hyderabad-based KMC Constructions after two years. Brookfield attempted to sell its flagship road asset, the 150 km Mumbai-Nashik Expressway, in 2019. It held talks with a number of companies, including Cube Highways and IRB Infrastructure, but no agreement was reached. Brookfield, which first entered India in 2014, has invested roughly $20 billion in the country to date. During the 2018-20 period, half of the money was spent on infrastructure. A Rs 25,215 crore investment in Jio Towers and a Rs 13,000 crore buyout of EastWest Pipeline are among its major infrastructure investments formerly Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure. Image Source Also read: Brookfield buys 30 acre land parcel from K Raheja Corp in Mumbai Also read: Brookfield Asset Management raises $7 bn for global transition fund