Securities and Exchange Commission
December 20, 2019
Page 5
such treatment is not free from doubt is that it depends on the highly factual determination that, for such U.S. federal income tax purposes, neither the partnership nor Holding LP has ever been engaged in a trade or business since the date of formation. The partnership and Holding LP were each formed in 2007. In addition, the Registrants have revised the disclosure on pages 209 through 211 of Amendment No. 2 to further clarify that the special distribution will be non-taxable to U.S. unitholders, even if treated as a distribution of cash, except to the extent that the fair market value of the class A shares received, as of the date of the special distribution (plus the amount of cash received in lieu of fractional class A shares pursuant to the special distribution), exceeds a U.S. unitholder’s adjusted tax basis in its interest in the partnership (including, for this purpose, both units and partnership preferred units). In this regard, the Registrants respectfully advise the Staff that, based on the historic trading prices of the units, historic distributions on the units, and historic allocations of the partnership’s items of income, gain, loss, and deduction for U.S. federal income tax purposes, the fair market value of the class A shares distributed to a U.S. unitholder who acquired units only after December 2009 is not expected to exceed such U.S. unitholder’s adjusted tax basis in its interest in the partnership. Accordingly, the Registrants do not expect for any U.S. unitholder to recognize gain for U.S. federal income tax purposes by reason of receiving class A shares in the special distribution, regardless whether the special distribution is treated as a distribution of cash or as a distribution of property for U.S. federal income tax purposes, unless such U.S. unitholder acquired units before January 2010. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Registrants respectfully note that the disclosure addresses the material U.S. federal income tax consequences of the special distribution without regard to when a unitholder acquired units.
Combined Carve-out Financial Statements of the Utilities Operations of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P.
Note 3. Significant Accounting Policies, page F-10
5. | Your response to comment 32 appears to describe three categories of revenue: core operations, which you appear to define as the distribution of natural gas and electricity, non-core operations, and connections. Please confirm our assumption that you will disaggregate revenues from external customers into these three categories, and that your disclosure will include revenue from both BUUK and NTS. If our assumption is incorrect, please tell us in more detail what you plan to disclose and how such disclosure will comply with paragraph 32 of IFRS 8. |
The Registrants confirm that they will disclose within the audited combined carve-out financial statements of the Utilities Operations of the Partnership as at and for the year ended December 31, 2019 to be included in the Registration Statement prior to effectiveness the disaggregated revenues relating to BUUK into the following categories: (1) gas and electricity distribution, (2) connections, and (3) other operations. Given that the revenue stream pertaining to NTS is dissimilar to BUUK’s distribution revenue streams, the Registrants will separately disaggregate gas transmission revenue in relation to NTS into a fourth category of products and services.
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