Digicel to make $60m on sale of Myanmar telecom towers unit

[Jonathan Fairfield]

Digicel to make $60m on sale of Myanmar telecom towers unit

Irish-owned Digicel will see a $60m (€53m) gain on the sale, according to papers filed with the US stock markets regulator.

The global media and telecoms business is currently in the process of raising an expected $1.8bn to $2bn through a share listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

The deal is expected to be the second-biggest US IPO this year, according to Bloomberg.

In a statement, Digicel said it had entered into a share purchase agreement with respect to the sale of its 75pc stake in Digicel Asian Holdings Pte Ltd, the parent of Digicel Myanmar Tower Company Limited (MTC), to the Edotco Group, a telecoms infrastructure business based in Malaysia.

The transaction is expected to close at the end of November and values the Digicel Myanmar Tower Company at $221m (€195m). According to a filing with US regulators, the net proceeds to Digicel total $120m, representing a gain to the business of $60m.

Commenting on the transaction, Digicel Group chief executive Colm Delves said: "The sale represents a strong return on our investment in Digicel Myanmar Tower Company and I would like to thank all the staff at MTC for their significant efforts over the past two years in making the company such a success."

Full story: http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/digicel-to-make-60m-on-sale-of-myanmar-telecom-towers-unit-31578477.html