Mexican telecommunications company Axtel has closed the sale of 883 telecommunications sites for approximately U.S. $250 million to American Tower Corporation, through its subsidiary MATC Digital. The deal has been in negotiations for some time.
Axtel, which provides broadband and home-phone line services, recently announced the addition of pay-television services in an effort to gain clients and increase revenue. Axtel also completed a key debt exchange offer this week to help it continue operating.
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According to Axtel, with these transactions, the company reduced its debt by approximately U.S.$310 million, and on a pro-forma basis for the twelve-month period ending on September 30, 2012; the net debt to adjusted EBTIDA ratio decreased from 3.4x to 2.1x.
These moves are part of the company’s recapitalization plan. Axtel’s CFO Felipe Canales stated that with the deal the company now has “a solid capital structure to support the implementation of its strategic initiatives and enhance its growth prospects.”
Earlier this month, American Tower acquired 558 towers from Movistar Chile for U.S.$96 million. In December 2011, AMT announced its plans to purchase 2,500 towers from Telefónica’s Mexican subsidiary for about U.S.$500 million, excluding value-added tax. In June, AMT bought more than 2,100 towers from Colombia Móvil, a subsidiary of the telecommunications group Millicom International Cellular SA (MIC), for $182 million in cash.
