Congratulations to IHS Africa on the acquisition of one of the most attractive tower portfolios in emerging markets! The deal sets records as Africa’s largest tower transaction to date in scale (9,151 towers) and deal value (around US$1.8bn), securing some of the most valuable towers in Africa for IHS, at a cost of around US$200k per site. In this analysis, TowerXchange looks at the terms of the transaction and it’s implications for BTS, for investor perceptions of IHS, and for potential interest in Airtel’s Nigerian towers, which remain for sale.
Examining the valuation and structure of the deal, and the context of the Nigerian towers
In early September 2014, IHS has announced a deal to acquire 9,151 towers from MTN Nigeria, representing all the towers in the Nigerian market leader’s network.
