Mobily’s towers sale draws interest of foreign firms: Report

American Tower Corp. (ATC) and IHS Nigeria Plc are just two of the companies interested in Etihad Etisalat Co.’s (Mobily) tower network, Bloomberg reported, citing sources close to the matter.

Talks were said to be at an early stage and no bids have been submitted.

The kingdom’s second-largest mobile operator is planning to sell its telecom towers portfolio for as much as $2 billion, Argaam Reported in May. The telco hired New York-based investment bank TAP Advisors for the sale.

The proceeds would help offset the company’s losses, which have reached $9 billion of its market value since accounting errors were discovered in November.

The sale of telecom towers is becoming a more common occurrence in the Middle East and Africa region, as carriers look to cut back on expensive infrastructure. Kuwait’s largest mobile-phone operator Zain is working with Citigroup to sell its tower networks in two Gulf countries for as much as $2 billion, Bloomberg reported in January.

Africa’s largest mobile operator MTN Group Ltd. sold towers to IHS Holdings Ltd (HIS) for $2 billion last year.

Last August, UAE-owned Etisalat Nigeria announced the sale of 2,136 of its towers to IHS as part of a broader strategy to improve network performance and data coverage.