Eaton Towers, the African towerco headquartered in London, has secured a US$60m loan in order to finance its tower acquisitions in Uganda.
The financing was arranged by Standard Bank, acting through Stanbic Uganda and the International Finance…
Eaton Towers, the African towerco headquartered in London, has secured a US$60m loan in order to finance its tower acquisitions in Uganda.
The financing was arranged by Standard Bank, acting through Stanbic Uganda and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an arm of the World Bank.
The loan is split between a US$30m tranche with an 8.5 year maturity from IFC and a US$30m tranche from Stanbic Uganda for a six-year period.
Eaton Towers announced that it had purchased towers in Uganda earlier this year. The towerco agreed to buy 300 towers from Orange Uganda and another 400 towers from Warid Telecom a few days later. The new loan will finance these acquisitions, as well as fund the development of up to 80 new towers in the country.
The US$60m financing is Eaton Towers’ second bank loan this year, following a US$30m debt facility from Standard Bank, acting through Stanbic Bank Ghana and the Standard Bank of South Africa.
TelecomFinance reported earlier this month that the towerco is also in talks with institutional investors to raise US$200m to expand its business. Lazard has been appointed as an advisor for the fundraising but co-founder Terry Rhodes would not reveal a timeline for discussions.
Regarding the new bank loan announcement, Peter Lewis, CFO at Eaton Towers, said: “This latest round of debt funding is a further validation of the Eaton Towers business model and management team, and a clear demonstration of our ability to efficiently leverage our assets across Africa.
“Mobile operators in Africa are increasingly viewing tower sharing as a key strategy to facilitate reductions in operating costs and capex, enabling them to focus on providing mobile services. Eaton Towers is now a leading tower company in Uganda and this funding facility will allow us to further consolidate our position there.”
