Telus has closed a major deal with La Caisse, the nation’s second-largest pension fund, selling a 49.9% stake in its wireless tower business Terrion for about $1.26 billion.
The deal values Terrion at more than $2.5 billion and will help Telus pay down debt. Terrion is Telus’ tower subsidiary, and even after the deal Telus remains the majority owner with control of the company.
Terrion runs almost 3,000 cell tower sites across Canada, making it the country’s biggest dedicated tower operator. Telus CEO Darren Entwistle said the partnership “unlocks significant value for Telus shareholders by strengthening our balance sheet and accelerating our deleveraging program.”
La Caisse says it plans to help Terrion grow by building and buying more towers, while also opening up access to more mobile carriers. Emmanuel Jaclot, an executive at La Caisse, said Terrion is “ideally positioned to accelerate its growth as the largest dedicated wireless tower operator in the country.”
Terrion’s CEO Eros Spadotto (a former Telus exec) added that the company’s mission is to “foster a more efficient and collaborative wireless ecosystem that unlocks value for Canadians and Canadian operators.”
The major deal was announced last month and Telus during the company’s second quarter earnings, where the telecom saw a $245 million net loss for the quarter. Telus will now lease space from Terrion’s tower sites.
It’s not just Telus that’s selling off its towers. Rogers closed a $7 billion deal with Blackstone and other pension funds, selling off 49.9% of its towers as well in June.
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