Abertis takes over TowerCo, the mobile tower telephony operator of the Italian motorway network

This is the group’s first international operation in the landline telecommunications business

• Abertis will manage the mobile communications of the 3000-plus kilometres of motorways controlled by Atlantia in Italy
• The group thus restates its commitment to the mobile telecommunications sector, and takes another step forward in the company’s internationalisation process.

Barcelona, May 12, 2014.- Abertis has reached an agreement with Atlantia for the takeover of its TowerCo subsidiary, the telecommunications operator that manages the mobile telephony towers located in the Italian motorway network. The operation, which was closed for a total amount of 94.6 million Euros, is expected to be formalised in the coming weeks.

TowerCo provides co-location services to the country’s main mobile telephony operators (Vodafone, Wind, H3G and Telecom Italia). It currently manages 306 sites (212 towers and another 94 points in tunnels) in the motorway network controlled by Atlantia in Italy, covering more than 3000 km. In 2013, TowerCo generated revenue of 21 million Euros and an EBITDA of 13 million Euros.

This is the first operation in the telecommunications sector in the overland area conducted by Abertis outside Spain, where it already controls a network of more than 6,000 sites, including broadcast and towering towers. The company thus takes yet another step forward in the process of internationalising its businesses.

Commitment to the towering business

The TowerCo operation, which meets the group’s strict return and value creation criteria, reinforces Abertis’ position in the towering business, where the company has engaged in major operations in the last year, such as the agreement reached in July 2013 for the purchase of a package of mobile telephony towers from Telefonica and Yoigo.

The takeover will help to consolidate the group as a key player in the process of streamlining the use of landline and mobile telecommunications infrastructures in Spain and abroad. It will also lead to the development of new business opportunities for sharing the infrastructure needed for the deployment of the fourth generation of mobile telephony.

Moreover, the operation enables Abertis to forge ahead in its process of diversification into activities other than landline-based dissemination in the telecommunications business. Following the latest operations in mobile telephony towers, and after the company took control of Hispasat in 2013, more than 65% of the telecommunications unit’s revenue comes from services other than broadcasting.