'The Canadian market has diversifying assets for any sophisticated investor looking to build out a diversified portfolio,' says Ken Luce
Australia's IFM Investors has opened its doors in Toronto, marking a significant expansion for the pension fund-owned asset manager into a market it views as increasingly critical for global infrastructure capital flows.
IFM Investors Canada’s Ken Luce lays out why the Australian infrastructure specialist is opening a Toronto office now, what it expects from Canada as a destination for long‑term capital, and how the relationship could reshape pension outcomes on both sides of the Pacific.
"Opening a Toronto office reflects that growing investor base," said Luce, executive director of IFM Investors Canada. "It allows us to get even closer with those clients and prospects and consultants, and local relationships that we have here. We really view these partnerships as being critically important over the long term. Our view is that IFM doesn't just want to be a financial contributor to these projects. We want to have active involvement and have a unique edge, and we'll look for the same in any local partner.”
For IFM, Canada's appeal extends beyond individual deals. The country offers structural advantages that global pension capital craves: a skilled workforce, abundant natural resources, established regulatory frameworks, and government support for infrastructure investment.
Additionally, Luce argues that Canada offers a strong structural foundation for long-term infrastructure investment. He points first to the country’s highly skilled and well-educated workforce, and then to its deep reserves of natural resources, particularly in energy, mining and materials.
IFM is zeroing in on three core infrastructure areas in Canada: transportation, energy and utilities. He sees meaningful scope for new projects and capital deployment across each of these sectors.
He links that focus directly to the energy transition. The firm is working toward a net‑zero objective for its infrastructure holdings by 2050 and is looking for investments that can both cut emissions and deliver solid outcomes for its investors. That means backing a broad mix of energy assets, from traditional pipelines and LNG facilities through to newer technologies.
One area he highlights is renewable natural gas. Instead of allowing methane to escape into the atmosphere, IFM is interested in projects that capture it and process it into a usable fuel that can move through existing gas networks. Because this fuel can be substituted directly into current systems, heavy industrial users do not need to overhaul or electrify their operations to start lowering their carbon footprint.
Set against Canada’s deep base of natural resources, Luce views the country as well positioned for significant additional investment right across the energy spectrum, spanning both conventional infrastructure and lower‑carbon opportunities such as renewable natural gas.
"I think the Canadian market certainly has some diversifying assets for any sophisticated investor looking to build out a diversified portfolio," he said. "The infrastructure asset class is quite interesting in that these are private assets and often have their own unique idiosyncrasies. As a result, they can be really diversifying from the perspective of a broader portfolio. They can zig when another asset zags."
According to Luce, IFM began in the mid-1990s as an infrastructure manager for Australian pension funds, initially investing only in domestic assets before expanding globally across transportation, utilities and energy.
But as infrastructure matured into a mainstream asset class, Canadian pension plans emerged as early adopters, with large funds leading and smaller schemes following ahead of many international peers. IFM started working with Canadian institutions in 2012, saw rapid growth in the market, and ultimately viewed opening a Toronto office as a natural step to deepen those relationships.
Now, with over $14 billion in Canadian institutional money invested in its infrastructure strategies and relationships spanning more than 200 clients, a physical presence felt overdue.
The timing coincides with a period of substantial growth in Australian pension assets. Australia's pension market is projected to become the world's second largest by 2035, trailing only the United States and surpassing both the UK and Canada. That capital needs somewhere to go, and Canadian infrastructure sits squarely in IFM's crosshairs, noted Luce.
IFM's Canadian footprint already extends beyond client relationships. The firm co-owns several major infrastructure assets alongside the country's largest pension plans. In Toronto, it shares ownership of Enwave, a district energy business, with Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. On the West Coast, it holds Global Container Terminals alongside Teachers and British Columbia Investment Management Corporation.
He pointed to the Enwave partnership as an example of how local knowledge compounds returns. The company operates one of the world's largest geothermal systems, providing heating and cooling to over 300 downtown Toronto buildings, including Princess Margaret Hospital and University of Toronto facilities.
IFM currently employs roughly 2,500 workers across its two Canadian assets. The firm frames this as part of its broader mandate as a pension fund-owned manager - one that thinks in decades rather than quarters.
The Toronto office will also strengthen IFM's ability to engage with policymakers. The firm maintains 140 infrastructure professionals globally, with significant teams in New York and Houston. Adding Canadian boots on the ground expands that network, allowing the IFM team to build more local connections "as they continue to interface at all levels of provincial and federal governments, as well as the market at large," said Luce.
IFM positions its pension fund ownership as a competitive edge - one that enables patient capital and long-duration investment horizons. The firm recently completed a decade-long terminal transformation program at Manchester Airport in the UK, doubling passenger capacity to 55 million annually.
"Having 30 years of infrastructure experience, having airports experience but also having that long-term view has allowed us to unlock a lot of value for our underlying clients, but also local travelers," Luce said.
As 2026 approaches, Luce asserted IFM's immediate priority is to deepen relationships with Canadian institutional clients navigating an increasingly complex asset class.
"Infrastructure is a complicated asset class. These are large, complex assets," Luce said. "With a physical presence, we're hoping that we can provide even more knowledge share to our large, sophisticated Canadian institutional clients. We're very excited about the market here locally but also the investment opportunities that just give it the significant competitive advantages that Canada has.”
