Vodafone PLC has sold a major stake in its wireless infrastructure company Vantage Towers to private equity firms KKR and Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) that will net the UK telco a minimum of €3.2bn.
A consortium led by KKR and GIP will buy up to half of Vodafone's 81.7% stake in Vantage, with the three-way joint venture offering to buy out the minority shareholders at a price of €32 per share.
Vodafone boss Nick Read said the €16bn deal achieved his objectives of retaining co-control of the infrastructure needed to roll out the 5G network, while extracting value and removing it from Vodafone's balance sheet.
Placing the stake in a joint venture with long-term investors KKR and GIP would enable it to achieve the higher debt multiples typical for infrastructure investments, he said.
Depending on how many minority investors agree to sell their shares, and how much of Vodafone's stake GIP and KKR agree to buy, the FTSE 100 listed group will receive cash proceeds of up to €7.1bn, Read said, which will be used to reduce net debt, which stood at €41.6bn at the end of March.
Shares in Vantage jumped 11% to €32.7 while Vodafone fell 1.4% to 105p.
Vodafone spun off its towers infrastructure into a separately listed company last year.