Optus strikes tower deal
Optus has sold a 70 per cent stake in its Australian mobile tower network.
The $1.9 billion deal with AustralianSuper most of Optus’ network, which consists of 2,312 towers and rooftop sites.
The deal will see Optus lease back use of the towers, and become anchor tenants on 565 new 5G sites to be built in the coming years.
Optus chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin says the sale will give the company capital to support its growth plans.
“There has been strong interest from a competitive field of high-quality prospective buyers, and we are pleased with the outcome of the sales process. We very much look forward to a bright future partnering with Aussie Super, an iconic Australian infrastructure investor,” she said.
AustralianSuper infrastructure boss Nik Kemp has described the towers as a “high-quality infrastructure asset”.
“This is a unique opportunity to partner with Singtel in owning Australia’s largest independent tower company and delivering value for AustralianSuper members,” Mr Kemp said.
Analysts say that the sale represents an enterprise multiple of about 38 times earnings, which is significantly higher than the 28 times multiple Telstra extracted from a Future Fund-led consortium for a minority stake in its InfraCo Towers business in June.