Airtel Africa completes the sale of its Madagascar unit to Helios
The telecom group Airtel Africa Plc announced on Wednesday 3 November that it has finalized the sale of its Madagascar-based telecommunications tower company to Helios Towers Plc. The cost of the transaction is estimated at $ 51.7 million.
Airtel Africa indicates that the proceeds of the transaction will be used to reduce the group’s external debt and to invest in network and sales infrastructure in Madagascar.
Under the terms of the transaction, Airtel Africa group subsidiaries will continue to develop, maintain and operate their equipment on the towers under separate lease agreements, largely in local currencies, with the Buyer.
The company also revealed that it has entered into “an exclusive memorandum of understanding” on the possibility of its tower assets in other African countries such as Chad and Gabon.
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Announced last March, along with the divestiture of its Malawi operations, the sale agreement was subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approval.
Note that Airtel has 1,229 towers in Madagascar and Malawi. These telephone antennas are part of the company’s telecommunications infrastructure network.
A subsidiary of the Indian group Bharti Airtel, Airtel Africa Plc recorded strong growth in the first half of 2021 with revenue of $ 2,272 million, an annual increase of 25.2%.
Double-digit growth noted in all the countries where the group operates. The company claims 122.7 million customers, an increase of 5.4%, with increased penetration of mobile data (customer base up 10.9%) and mobile money services (customer base in increase of 19.0%).
