The deal will see Infracapital, the infrastructure equity arm of M&G Prudential, pay an initial £215 million upon completion of the deal, due in June 2019. Then it will pay up to £165m in a series of instalments, subject to future performance.
SSE Enterprise Telecoms, which operates a 12,000km UK-wide fibre network and an estate of 15 data centres, will retain the SSE Group as a key funder and anchor customer.
The transaction, which is expected to close in June 2019, will create a shared ownership structure designed to accelerate SSE Enterprise Telecoms’ plans for growth in the fibre sector, the two firms said. It will also support SSE’s ambitions to expand into new areas, such as software-defined wide area networks (SD-WAN), 5G and smart cities.
Colin Sempill (pictured), SSE Enterprise Telecoms managing director, said: “Infracapital’s investment in SSE Enterprise Telecoms shows the confidence it has in the future growth of the business. It recognises the success we have achieved to date, building out a great network, winning notable contracts and being relentlessly focused on customer satisfaction. Both parties see this as an opportunity to help develop the network infrastructure that this country needs to turn the vision of the UK’s digital economy into reality.”
Infracapital has significant experience in the telecoms sector and has been appointed by the UK Government to manage a portion of its £400m Digital Infrastructure Investment Fund, to support the nationwide roll out of high speed fibre.
James Harraway, Infracapital director, said: “High-speed connectivity is vital to economic growth and prosperity and we are delighted to announce this partnership with SSE plc. SSE Enterprise Telecoms is an established telecoms infrastructure provider and is well positioned to support growth in this critical sector. Infracapital has considerable expertise of investing in digital infrastructure and we look forward to working closely with our new partners as the business continues to grow, deliver new projects and expand its networks.”
