Cellnex buys NOS Tower business
April 14, 2020
Wireless telecommunications and broadcasting infrastructure operator Cellnex is to acquire NOS Towering from Portuguese mobile operator NOS.
The transaction initially involves some 2,000 telecommunications sites. This is a portfolio of telecommunication towers and rooftop antennas, located in urban (40 per cent), suburban and rural (60 per cent) areas throughout the country.
The transaction represents an initial payment of c. € 375 million (EV), in addition to expansion Capex of up to c. € 175 million related to perimeter increase (up to 400 new sites, including a Build-to-Suit programme) and other agreed initiatives over the next six years. The acquisition will be financed with available cash.
Under the agreement, Cellnex and NOS have signed an initial 15-year contract, extendable by successive additional 15-year periods, under which NOS will continue to use the sites that Cellnex will operate, locating its voice and data signal transmission equipment there.
Likewise, taking into account the needs of the Portuguese market in terms of investments in the mobile network and higher densification needs – with a special focus on rural deployments to help overcome the digital territorial divide – the agreement also foresees the increase of the perimeter by up to 400 new sites – including a Build-to-Suit programme – over the next six years.
Once these assets are fully integrated and the new sites rolled out, the estimated additional EBITDA (IFRS16) generated for the Group is circa €50 million.
With this transaction, Cellnex’s backlog of future sales contracted will grow by €2 billion to €46 billion.
The closing of the transaction is subject to the usual administrative and regulatory authorisations.
Commenting on the deal, Cellnex CEO Tobias Martinez underlined the capacity of Cellnex teams, both at corporate level and in Portugal, to continue progressing in new agreements with its customers, even at a particularly complex and sensitive scenario as the one currently being faced.
“The agreement reached with NOS reinforces the nature and the neutral and independent operator profile that characterises the Cellnex model,” he suggested. “Following the very recent agreement to acquire OMTEL, also in Portugal, this transaction exemplifies the sense of being an operator which, precisely due to its neutral and independent nature, can consolidate long-term collaboration projects with the various MNOs and telecom operators who access our infrastructures to roll out their telecommunications networks.”