Foreign investors circle British mast owner Arqiva

arqiva

An array of international infrastructure investors from the US, Asia and Europe are sizing up the £6bn mobile and broadcasting mast giant Arqiva as its current owners prepare to put the company on the block.

The crucial infrastructure provider, currently owned by Macquarie and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), is being eyed by at least half a dozen buyers, City sources said. 

Discussions are at a preliminary stage, with a formal process to begin in the next few weeks, but known suitors include CKI, the Hong Kong-listed holding company controlled by Asia’s richest man Li Ka-shing.

 GIC, Singapore’s enormous sovereign wealth fund, is also understood to be considering a bid, while other parties understood to be interested include the US private equity giant KKR and 4M Investments, another private vehicle led by a telecoms veteran. 

Germany’s Allianz, part of last year’s winning consortium in the £11bn battle for National Grid’s gas distribution network, has also taken an interest.

Among potential trade buyers, Arqiva’s French equivalent, TDF, controlled by Brookfield, is as an early leader. 

Arqiva has a monopoly on Britain’s television and radio transmitters and is the UK’s biggest independent mobile mast owner. It recently refinanced much of its £3bn debt to prepare for a sale.

However, there are no guarantees that investors exploring bids now will commit later on, and that there were likely to be others waiting in the wings.