Spanish tower company Cellnex announced that it has reached an agreement with Iliad to acquire a 60% controlling stake in the company that will operate Play’s approximately 7,000 telecommunications sites in Poland.
Iliad launched a takeover bid for Play —agreed with its two main shareholders— on 21st September and is expected to complete it by the end of November. The agreement between Iliad and Cellnex is expected to be closed by Q2 2021.
Cellnex will invest approximately €800 million in acquiring the 60% stake, while the remaining 40% will continue to be owned by Play (Iliad) in line with the model that Cellnex and Iliad previously agreed for the sites formerly operated by Free (Iliad) in France. Cellnex will finance the transaction with available cash.
The new Polish telecommunications tower company could invest up to approximately €1.3 billion over the next 10 years in rolling out up to c. 5,000 new sites.
Franco Bernabè, Cellnex Chairman
This is most certainly a significant differentiating factor that represents an undoubted added value, allowing us to present ourselves as a natural partner of choice for European mobile operators with which we can work together in different markets, supporting them in their projects to complete the roll-outs of 4G and accelerate the spread of 5G.
Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex
This transaction marks the addition of Poland to the group of European countries in which we operate. We are talking about one of the most important countries and economies in Eastern Europe...
