Phoenix Tower International (PTI), a leading wireless communications infrastructure provider, today announced it has closed a HoldCo financing facility to continue its international expansion. The transaction consists of three tranches at close that may be further increased through an accordion feature up to a total of EUR 775 million (approx. USD 940 million) to fund future growth. Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a global investment group, and AMP Capital, a global investment manager, provided the financing.
The multi-jurisdiction facility is a landmark transaction underpinning PTI’s continued focus on being a leading global provider of infrastructure assets. The facility will be used to fund PTI’s recent growth in Europe and provides substantial additional capacity to support further growth in both existing and new markets worldwide.
“This financing provides PTI with the flexibility to continue to grow our business across all markets with incremental financing available at our disposal, and will allow us to deliver for our customers, counterparties and business partners in an expedited manner with a strong lender group. CDPQ and AMP Capital’s financing will support PTI as we continue to construct and invest in digital infrastructure across all markets and lead the necessary 4G and 5G build-outs on behalf of our customers and the populations we serve around the world,” said Dagan Kasavana, Chief Executive Officer of PTI.
“PTI’s focus on offering value-add infrastructure solutions to our carrier customers is representative of Blackstone’s thematic focus on digital infrastructure and wireless connectivity. We are proud to partner with CDPQ, a long-term partner to Blackstone, and AMP Capital to support our expansion across the US, Europe, and other growth markets ” said Thomas Senecal of Blackstone Tactical Opportunities.
“This financing in PTI builds on our previous experience to contribute to the expansion of digital infrastructure globally, alongside recognized industry leaders in this fast-growing sector,” said Marc Cormier, Executive Vice-President and Head of Fixed Income at CDPQ. “By providing a customized and flexible financing solution to PTI, CDPQ is supporting a high-quality operator well positioned to seize opportunities in attractive markets that are experiencing a rising demand for connectivity.”
“PTI is one of the leading global owners and operators of tower infrastructure, and AMP Capital is pleased to have collaborated with PTI and CDPQ to implement a highly bespoke financing to support their growth ambitions,” said Patrick Trears, Global Head of Infrastructure Debt at AMP Capital. “With the demand for telecommunication infrastructure set to continue to increase, we believe that PTI is well-placed to assist in meeting this demand and capitalize on associated growth opportunities across their markets. Telecommunications infrastructure remains a key sector for our infrastructure debt strategy, and with this transaction we are pleased to have added another high-quality investment for our investors around the world.”
PTI was represented by Locke Lord. CDPQ and AMP Capital were represented by Norton Rose Fulbright. Terms of the transaction remain confidential between the parties.
About PTI
PTI owns and operates over 12,500 towers, 986 km of fiber and markets over 80,000 other wireless infrastructure and related sites located in 16 countries throughout Europe, the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean.
PTI was founded in 2013 with a mission to be a premier site provider to wireless operators across the Americas in high-growth markets. PTI’s investors include funds managed by Blackstone Tactical Opportunities and John Hancock, as well as various members of the management team. For more information, please visit www.phoenixintnl.com and follow us on LinkedIn.
About CDPQ
At Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), we invest constructively to generate sustainable returns over the long term. As a global investment group managing funds for public retirement and insurance plans, we work alongside our partners to build enterprises that drive performance and progress. We are active in the major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. As at December 31, 2020, CDPQ’s net assets total CAD 365.5 billion. For more information, visit cdpq.com, follow us on Twitter or consult our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.
About AMP Capital
AMP Capital is a global investment manager with a heritage and strength in real estate and infrastructure, and experience in fixed income, equities and multi-asset solutions. AMP Capital has been investing in infrastructure since 1988 and has US$22bn infrastructure equity and debt assets under management as at 31 December 2020 1. AMP Capital has been ranked in the top 10 infrastructure managers globally, based on total capital raised 2. AMP Capital is owned by AMP Limited, which was established in 1849, and is one of Australia's largest retail and corporate pension providers.
1
As at 31 December 2020. Figure consists of the Net Asset Value of certain funds and clients managed by AMP Capital taking into account all of the assets less any liabilities. This includes cash and liquidity of such funds in addition to any committed but undrawn capital.
2 Derived from the 2020 Infrastructure Investor 50. Ranking based on the amount of infrastructure direct investment capital raised by firms between 1 Jan 2015 and 31 Aug 2020