31-03-2021
Ooredoo announced today that its Indonesia-based company PT Indosat Tbk (“Ooredoo”) has signed a sale and leaseback agreement for more than 4,200 telecom towers with PT Epid Menara AssetCo (Edge Point Indonesia).
PT EPID Menara AssetCo is an Indonesian subsidiary of Edge Point Singapore, wholly owned by Digital Colony, the global leader in digital infrastructure investment, with extensive experience in owning and operating mobile telecom towers.
Indosat Ooredoo has agreed to sell this group of towers for a total value of US $ 750 million, making it one of the largest commercial deals of its kind in Asia. The sale will provide the capital needed to give shareholders and customers additional value and to further build on Indosat Ooredoo's strong growth momentum, by improving network performance and launching new and innovative digital solutions to enhance customer experience.
The sale is part of the Ooredoo Group’s strategy to move to a more efficient and flexible asset mitigation model and leverage the inherent value of its infrastructure. Ooredoo owns a wide range of towers around the world, numbering 27,000, and they represent infrastructure of great value to the group. The Liquidation of assets in order to provide additional value to shareholders and customers is one of the main focuses of Ooredoo's current strategy.
“I would like to congratulate Indosat Ooredoo for concluding this sale and leaseback agreement with Edge Point Indonesia,” said Aziz Al Othman Fakhro, Managing Director of Ooredoo Group. This transaction is fully in line with our new strategy that focuses on giving shareholders and customers more value. This strategy is a shift towards an asset reduction model that will provide us with significant capital and enable us to focus on our primary mission of providing premium digital services to our individual and corporate client base which definitely benefits the people of Indonesia. "
Edge Point Indonesia has been announced as the winner of the competitive bidding launched by Indosat Ooredoo, with the deal to be completed in the second quarter of this year, according to the usual terms that include approval by Indosat Ooredoo shareholders at the extraordinary general assembly meeting to be held on May 6. Indosat Ooredoo will re-rent space on the towers for a period of 10 years to meet its continuing needs.
Indosat Ooredoo CEO Ahmed Al Neama said: “We are delighted that Indosat Ooredoo has agreed to complete this transaction, which will undoubtedly contribute to enhancing our strategy to provide additional value by leveraging our infrastructure assets. This deal represents the third and final sale of assets from our high-quality set of towers, and it will also enhance our transformation into a leading digital communications company. We are confident that the leaseback agreement with its distinctive terms will meet our continuous needs in relation to telecom tower services, and that the capital resulted from this deal will help us move forward to achieve more. Of growth, Indosat Ooredoo and Edge Point Indonesia will continue to work together in close partnership for the future.”
It is reported that JP Morgan acted as financial advisor to Indosat Ooredoo during the deal.