Supported the merger of the tower portfolios of the two leading mobile network operators in Greece

The problem

• In 2014, the two leading mobile network operators (MNOs) in Greece (Vodafone and WIND) entered into a network-sharing agreement to jointly manage their mobile networks and implement radio access network (RAN) sharing across select areas. As a result of increasing co-operation, the MNOs were looking to merge their tower infrastructure assets in Greece into a jointly owned entity (Vantage Towers Greece) which would be majority-owned by Vantage Towers, and then lease back the sites to Vodafone and WIND
• Analysys Mason was engaged as an independent adviser to assess the commercial outlook and technical characteristics of each party’s assets and inform relative valuations of the merger exercise

The solution

• We deployed a highly skilled senior team with deep knowledge of the tower industry and the local market, as well as local language skills
• We developed a forecast for future tenancies on a site-by-site basis for the two tower portfolios; determined suitable anchor pricing using total-cost-of-ownership modelling and modelled upside scenarios including the impact of tourism and commercialisation of small cells
• We performed a technical assessment on a sample of each party’s assets (e.g. maintenance status, technical capacity for hosting new tenants) through site visits
• Due to the handling of commercially sensitive information, we worked under a ‘clean-team’ environment to prevent the potential leak of forward-looking plans and other confidential information between the two MNOs
• As a result, three reports were produced: one for clean-team members only and two separate non-clean team reports (one for each party) which had commercially sensitive information on the other MNO redacted

Figure: Illustration of decommissioning potential in Euripus Strait

The result

• Our inputs were used to construct the consolidated business plan of the two portfolios and inform the valuations
• Thanks to our analysis and continuous support, our clients successfully closed the merger in time and were able to present the deal as a successful case study of inorganic growth in preparation for Vantage Towers Europe’s initial public offering