The telecommunications company Telkom Kenya (TKL), has announced to sell 723 towers to the global tower company, American Tower Corporation (ATC) in Kenya
Telkom is an integrated telecommunications service provider, in which Helios Investment Partners has a stake of 60 per cent and the government of Kenya 40 per cent. The move is seen to further improve the tower infrastructure across the continent.
The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2018 and is subject to regulatory approval.
Commenting about the agreement, Eddy Njoroge, board chair at Telkom Kenya, stated, “The Board of TKL has made it clear that our objective is to transform Telkom into a business which has a reputation for excellence in terms of the quality and reliability of its network. This agreement, in which we will be partnering with a leading global tower company, will enhance the quality and reliability of our network to the benefit of our customers.”
William H Hess, president of ATC for the EMEA and Latin America, commented, “This represents American Tower’s 17th market globally, and our fifth in Africa, and we look forward to helping expand the reach of mobile broadband throughout the country. Kenya is a very attractive market, and we have high expectations for its long-term growth potential.”
Aldo Mareuse, CEO of TKL, added, “The network availability and service levels we have agreed with ATC are world class and this agreement represents another important step towards the transformation of this business and the service levels we deliver to our customers. Telkom will now focus on its core function – the provision of quality telecommunications services to our customers.”
“In addition, the sale will release capital for further investment in our 4G network and a number of state of the art IT platforms, all of which will further enhance services for our customers as they demand higher quality and speed from our mobile data networks as well as a richer range of services,” Mareuse stressed.
