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Leighton Holdings Limited (ASX:LEI) has entered into a 50:50 investment partnership with funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management LLC (NYSE:APO).Under the deal the construction and engineering company’s Thiess and Leighton Contractor Services will be merged into a single operation.Leighton and Apollo will have equal control of the merged assets, referred to as the Services Business, and representing an enterprise value of more than $1 billion.While the deal is subject to approvals Leighton expects about $700 million in cash proceeds to reduce its gearing by about 10 percentage points.Leighton Holdings reported a net profit of $285 million in the first half of the 2014 calendar year.
