Mobile tower firm gets private equity funds
03-02-2010
Latest in the telecom tower consolidation wave
Privately-held telecom tower company Tower Vision India Pvt Ltd said it has secured equity financing from eight international investors led by private equity firm Quadrangle Capital Partners.
Gurgaon-based Tower Vision did not disclose the size of the transaction, but said the equity financing and concurrent debt financing would provide it with more than $300 million to expand its tower portfolio and increase its business.
Tower Vision manages towers at about 5,000 locations across 14 telecom circles. The Economic Times newspaper reported earlier that the company had raised $300 million in 2008 from investors including Morgan Stanley
TowerVision India is among the handful of independent tower management companies (that are not supported by telecom service providers) and it specialises in the provision of passive infrastructure to the wireless telecommunications industry. Its promoters include RP Capital from the UK, Israel's Fore Group and Mivtach Shamir Real Estate (also from Israel). TowerVision has been present in India since July 2005. It formally launched its Indian operations in January 2006 after receiving FIPB approval. It holds a Department of Telecom-issued infrastructure provider (IP-1) licence.
ToweVision will use these funds to expand its operations to more circles. This funding deal comes within a month of the country's largest stand-alone tower firm GTL Infrastructure (GIL), a provider of passive telecom infrastructure acquiring Aircel Cellular's tower business in a Rs 8,400-crore all-cash deal. This transaction witnessed Aircel spinning off its tower business with 17,500 towers into a special purpose vehicle, which has been acquired by GIL. The deal, which is expected to be completed by May will catapult GIL into the world's largest tower company, replacing American Tower Corporation.
Boston-based American Tower Corporation is also at the final stages of taking a controlling stake in Essar Telecom Infrastructure Pvt Ltd (ETIPL) in a $350-400 million deal, the latest in a series of moves in India's mobile towers business that is in the grip of a consolidation wave.
Privately-held telecom tower company Tower Vision India Pvt Ltd said it has secured equity financing from eight international investors led by private equity firm Quadrangle Capital Partners.
Gurgaon-based Tower Vision did not disclose the size of the transaction, but said the equity financing and concurrent debt financing would provide it with more than $300 million to expand its tower portfolio and increase its business.
Tower Vision manages towers at about 5,000 locations across 14 telecom circles. The Economic Times newspaper reported earlier that the company had raised $300 million in 2008 from investors including Morgan Stanley
TowerVision India is among the handful of independent tower management companies (that are not supported by telecom service providers) and it specialises in the provision of passive infrastructure to the wireless telecommunications industry. Its promoters include RP Capital from the UK, Israel's Fore Group and Mivtach Shamir Real Estate (also from Israel). TowerVision has been present in India since July 2005. It formally launched its Indian operations in January 2006 after receiving FIPB approval. It holds a Department of Telecom-issued infrastructure provider (IP-1) licence.
ToweVision will use these funds to expand its operations to more circles. This funding deal comes within a month of the country's largest stand-alone tower firm GTL Infrastructure (GIL), a provider of passive telecom infrastructure acquiring Aircel Cellular's tower business in a Rs 8,400-crore all-cash deal. This transaction witnessed Aircel spinning off its tower business with 17,500 towers into a special purpose vehicle, which has been acquired by GIL. The deal, which is expected to be completed by May will catapult GIL into the world's largest tower company, replacing American Tower Corporation.
Boston-based American Tower Corporation is also at the final stages of taking a controlling stake in Essar Telecom Infrastructure Pvt Ltd (ETIPL) in a $350-400 million deal, the latest in a series of moves in India's mobile towers business that is in the grip of a consolidation wave.
