Bharti Airtel - Inks Third Tower Sale Deal in Africa:: Edelweiss

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Bharti Airtel (Bharti) has announced that it will divest over 4,800 telecom towers in Nigeria to American Towers Corporation (ATC). The former will be the anchor tenant on the portfolio under a lease agreement with a 10-year initial term. Although no financial details have been disclosed, assuming INR7.5mn/tower, the deal value works out to ~USD583mn. This is the company’s third tower divestment deal in Africa; earlier, it had divested 3,500 towers to Eaton Towers and 3,100 towers to Helios Towers Africa (HTA). With the current sale, Bharti has divested ~11,400 of total ~18,000 towers in Africa. The sale will enable the company to not only pare debt (currently USD10.1bn), but also lower ongoing capex requirement on passive infrastructure. Hence, we perceive it as a step in the right direction.

Contours of the agreement

Bharti will divest ~4,800 towers to ATC in Nigeria.

The company will be the anchor tenant on the portfolio under a lease agreement with 10-year initial term.

The deal is expected to close in H1FY15, subject to regulatory approval.

link

https://www.edelweiss.in/research/EdelFlash-Bharti-Airtel--Inks-Third-Tower-Sale-Deal-in-Africa/27682.html