FILE PHOTO: Men look at the logo of Qatar Telecom Ooredoo, formerly Qatar Telecom Qtel, as they walk past the company's head office in Doha March 16, 2013. REUTERS/Fadi Al-Assaad
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is among suitors weighing a final bid for network towers being sold by Qatari telecommunications firm Ooredoo QPSC, people familiar with the matter say.
American Tower Corp, IHS Holding Ltd and Helios Towers Plc are also considering binding offers for all or part of the portfolio, according to people, who asked not to be identified as the matter is private.
Ooredoo’s tower assets, which span the Persian Gulf region, as well as countries including Algeria, could be valued at US$3bil (RM14bil) to US$5bil (RM24bil) in any deal, they said.
Bids are due in the coming days, the people said. Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty any of the suitors will decide to submit offers.
Ooredoo said in September that it will carve out its portfolio of almost 20,000 towers as part of a shift to an asset-light model.
The state-owned telecoms operator recently sold its Myanmar business for an enterprise value of US$576mil (RM2.7bil) and is also considering carving out its data centre unit to attract new investors into the business.
A spokesperson for Ooredoo said the company planned to announce the carveout of its towers business in 2023, declining to comment further.
Representatives for Helios, IHS and PIF declined to comment, while a spokesperson for American Tower didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
PIF plans to invest US$24bil (RM114bil) in Middle Eastern and North African countries as oil-rich Saudi Arabia seeks to bolster regional economies, it said in October, and will channel funds into sectors including infrastructure, healthcare and telecoms.
Last month, the wealth fund offered to buy a majority stake in Tawal, the telecom towers unit of phone company Saudi Telecom Co, as part of its plan to create a cellular tower behemoth.
PIF plans to bid for the Ooredoo assets through Tawal, the people said. — Bloomberg
