(Adds deal details in paragraph 3 & 4, background in paragraph...

(Adds deal details in paragraph 3 & 4, background in paragraph 2 & 5, CEO comment in paragraph 6)

June 29 (Reuters) - Australian financial conglomerate Macquarie Group Ltd (MQG) said on Thursday that a fund managed by its asset management arm had signed an agreement to divest its ownership of U.S.-based port terminal operator Ceres Terminals Holdings LLC.

In May, the Wall Street Journal reported Macquarie's sale of North American port facilities business, Ceres Terminals, in a deal valued at $1 billion, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Macquarie Infrastructure Partners III has signed the agreement with American marine terminal operator Carrix, though, the company did not disclose a deal value, Macquarie Group said in a statement.

However, Macquarie will keep the ownership of Ceres Terminals Jacksonville and Intermodal Container Transfer Facility in Jacksonville, as the two units managed by Ceres will not be part of this transaction, Macquarie said.

The financial conglomerate acquired full control of the general cargo stevedoring operations in 2019 from Tokyo-based shipping and logistics firm Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line).

"We all look forward to the next chapter of growth with Carrix,...we are confident that the combination will continue to serve our customers, employees and other stakeholders well," said Craig Mygatt, chief executive officer, Ceres Terminals.

Macquarie did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for a confirmation on the deal price.