Africa’s largest GSM Network, MTN Group has said that it will exchange its 51% interest in Nigeria Tower Interco BV, for an additional shareholding in IHS Holding Limited. The deal will see MTN now own 20% of IHS up from 15% before the deal was announced. MTN interest in INT (owners of Nigeria Tower) is reportedly worth about R4.6 billion, and it recorded a R2.5 billion loss in the six months to June in that stake.
MTN’s 15 percent stake in IHS was worth R11 billion.
The transaction is also expected to close once new shares in IHS group have been issued during Q1 2017.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, MTN said, “in exchanging all of its interest in INT in Nigeria for additional shares in the pan-African IHS Group, all of MTN’s interest in IHS will sit alongside a world-class group of investors including Wendel, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC), Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) and Emerging Capital Partners (ECP), among other international investors”.
MTN explains the deal enables it to simplify its tower ownership structure and diversify its tower infrastructure exposure across the IHS Group, which operates in a number of markets across Africa.
Executive chairman Phuthuma Nhleko says “the transaction represents a significant step in MTN’s long-standing partnership with IHS. It simplifies our ownership structure and diversifies our tower investments across the IHS Group. IHS Group is extremely well positioned for future growth and build-out from 3G upgrades and the move to long-term evolution across its key markets.”
IHS Group is the largest independent tower operator in Africa, Europe and Middle East and the tenth largest independent tower company in the world, with over 23 300 towers.
Source: Reuters
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