Telco Altice is looking at further acquisitions in the Dominican Republic following its acquisition of quad-play operator Tricom, announced on 1 November.
TelecomFinance understands that now Altice has set foot in the country, it will look at…
Telco Altice is looking at further acquisitions in the Dominican Republic following its acquisition of quad-play operator Tricom, announced on 1 November.
TelecomFinance understands that now Altice has set foot in the country, it will look at in-country acquisitions as it has done in its other markets.
The Luxembourg-based company said last week it plans to “move aggressively” to expand Tricom’s mobile offering. Orange Dominicana – the number-two wireless operator in the country – is up for sale but it is not known whether Altice is participating in the bidding process.
Altice bought 88% of Tricom for an undisclosed fee and was advised by Lazard on the deal. It acquired the stake from Hispaniola Telecom Holdings, a vehicle owned by US PE firm Amzak Capital Management and Panama-based investor Inversiones Bahia, which has retained 12% of the operator.
The acquisition of Tricom, which has annual EBITDA of around US$60m to US$65m, is subject to the approval of the Dominican telecoms regulator, Indotel.
Altice is also planning another financing transaction before the end of the year, in part to fund the Tricom acquisition, a source with direct knowledge of the situation told TelecomFinance.
In June it sold a €250m (US$338m) bond and secured close to €1bn (US$1.3bn) through different loan facilities, in part for its acquisition of Outremer Telecom, which operates across the French territories in the Caribbean and Indian Ocean.
Since that deal, Altice has bought Portuguese telco Oni as well as Mobius, based on the island of Reunion. Both acquisitions resulted in Altice adding to its existing operations in those countries.
Dexter Goei, CEO of Altice, described the acquisition of Tricom as “an important step in the implementation of our stated growth strategy of identifying attractive opportunities in markets where we can create value”.
Should Altice move for Orange Dominicana, it could expect to pay between €675m (US$886m) and €900m (US$1.18bn), according to an analyst’s valuation made in the summer. Digicel and Cable & Wireless Communications, which both have significant holdings in the Caribbean, are both said to be interested in the unit.
Meanwhile Altice is also looking to increase its stake in French cableco Numericable to 30% through a planned listing.
Full coverage of Altice’s takeover of Tricom here
