A team from HWL Ebsworth Lawyers is advising Allegro Funds, an Australian private equity house and fund manager, on its purchase of Great Southern Rail from Serco Group plc, a British listed business services company.

Jamie Restas, National Head of the HWL Ebsworth's Commercial Group, is leading the legal team advising Allegro Funds on the acquisition.  He is being assisted by Banking and Finance Partner Peter Staniszewski, and Commercial Special Counsel Niomi Abeywardena and Samantha Reidy.

Great Southern Rail operates some of the most famous rail services in the world - the Indian Pacific and the Ghan, as well as the Overland. The Indian Pacific crosses the vast Australian continent between Sydney and Perth (4,352 km one way), the Ghan travels between Adelaide and Darwin (2,979 km one way), and the Overland links Melbourne and Adelaide (828 km one way).  The immense scale of these rail journeys across Australia's unique and extreme landscapes whilst travelling in luxury appeals to many tourists, including international visitors to Australia.

Allegro is expecting to focus its attentions on developing the luxury end of Great Southern's services to appeal to high end domestic and international tourists.

The acquisition, for a confidential price, is expected to close before the end of May 2015.