Closing conditions met on Helios, Omantel tower deal
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Closing conditions met on Helios, Omantel tower deal

Telecommunication tower with 5G cellular network antenna on city

Helios Towers says that closing conditions have been met as it looks to acquire the cell towers of Omantel.

The London-based infrastructure firm owns and operates tower sites in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Senegal, Madagascar and Malawi.

The deal will see Helios take helm of all of Omantel’s passive tower infrastructure portfolio and is expected to conclude next month.

It was first announced in May 2021 and will see 2,980 sites transferred over to Helios for a sum of around US$575 million.

At the time, then CEO Kash Pandya, who has since been replaced by Tom Greenwood said: “We are delighted to announce the creation of our long-term partnership with Omantel through this transaction.

“We view Oman as a very attractive and supportive market for foreign investments, with strong growth and exciting future prospects.

“We will be further investing capital in Oman as we add to the tower count through greenfield BTS site development and colocations, enhance the current tower portfolio and develop a talented local Omani team.”

However, in June Helios said it would be reducing its purchasing stake after finding a partner for the acquisition.

The new agreement sees Helios purchasing 70%, while Oman Infrastructure fund’s Rakiza Telecommunication Infrastructure takes the remaining 30%.

Once completed, Helios Towers and Omantel will enter into a long-term service contract for a period of 15 years.

Through the deal, Helios will make a foray into the Middle Eastern infrastructure market, having been Africa-focused over the last few years.

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