TX EuropeDossier 2017

www.towerchange.
com
TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017

Accelerating growth, investment opportunities and new TowerXchange 2nd annual Meetup Europe,
business models in the European tower industry 4-5 April, Business Design Centre, London
With special thanks to the TowerXchange Inner Circle
Our informal network of advisers: About TowerXchange
Founded in 2012, TowerXchange is your

(Chairman) Daniel Lee Chuck Green Kurt Bagwell
Managing Director Executive Chairman President International independent community for operators,
Intrepid Advisory Partners Helios Towers Africa SBA Communications towercos, investors and suppliers interested
Zhiyong Zhang Suresh Sidhu Jim Eisenstein in EMEA, CALA and Asian towers. Were
Chairman & President CEO Chairman & CEO
Miteno edotco Grupo TorreSur a community of practitioners formed to
promote and accelerate infrastructure
Akhil Gupta Malcolm Collins Bimal Dayal
Chairman Chief Executive COO sharing. TowerXchange dont build, operate or
Bharti Infratel CTIL Indus Towers
invest in towers; were a neutral community
Michel Faivre Ted Zhong Inder Bajaj host and commentator on telecoms
Directeur Programme Partage CEO CEO
dInfrastructure AMEA, Orange Q Towers International HTN Towers infrastructure.
Nina Triantis Hal Hess Riana Donaldson

Managing Director, Global, Head of EVP, International Operations and Manager: International Network The TowerXchange Journal is free to
Telecoms & Media President, EMEA and Latin America Operations Support
Standard Bank American Tower Vodacom qualifying recipients. We also provide
webinars and regular meetups. TowerXchange
Terry Rhodes Nobel Tanihaha Tunde Titilayo
CEO President Director Vice Chairman monetises this community through hosting
Eaton Towers PT SOLUSI TUNAS PRATAMA (STP) SWAP International
annual Meetups and the sale of advertising,
Marc Ganzi Umang Das Jack Dessay without compromising editorial integrity.
President, Digital Bridge & Chief Mentor Managing Director
Mexico Tower Partners Viom Networks Macquarie Capital
TowerXchange was founded by Kieron
Arun Kapur Gilles Kuntz Jeffrey Eldredge
Co-Founder CEO Partner Osmotherly, a TMT community host and
Irrawaddy Green Towers TowerCo of Madagascar Vinson & Elkins
events organiser with 18 years experience,
James Maclaurin Maria Scotti Enda Hardiman and is governed with the support and advice
formerly CEO CEO Managing Partner
edotco Torrecom Hardiman Telecommunications Ltd. of the TowerXchange Inner Circle an
Areef Kassam David Meganck Adeel Bajwa informal network of advisors

Director of Infrastructure Founder and COO Senior GM of Legal Affairs and
GSMA Mobile for Development Acsys Contracts, Warid Telecom
2016 Site Seven Media Ltd. All rights reserved. Neither the
Ayman Al Adl Tilak Raj Dua Scott Coates whole nor any substantial part of this publication may be re-
Director - TMT Director General CEO produced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any
Standard Chartered Bank TAIPA Wireless Infrastructure Group means without the prior permission of Site Seven Media Ltd.
Short extracts may be quoted if TowerXchange is cited as the
Dagan Kasavana Peter Owen Edmunds Carlo Ramella
source. TowerXchange is a trading name of Site Seven Media
CEO Co-founder and Chairman COO, EI Towers
Phoenix Tower International Russian Towers and Chairman, Towertel Ltd, registered in the UK. Company number 8293930.
2 | TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017 | www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe | TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017 | XX
Contents
4 -16 TowerXchange
Meetup information 57 - 88 Transactions
and deals 131 - 159 5G and
small cells
4 Introduction 58 Cellnex/Shere deal analysis 132 Back to the future - Ericsson on 5G
6 Agenda, speakers and roundtables 61 Why the Telxius IPO was cancelled 134 The knowns and unknowns of 5G roll out
65 Why the Global Tower IPO was postponed 137 Analysys Mason on 5G deployments
12 Technology working groups
68 American Tower/FPS deal analysis 141 Vodafone Procurement Companys small cells
14 Investors club and New Street Research Tower strategy
74 Cellnex/Protelindo deal analysis
Conference 146 Cellnex/CommsCon
79 New Street Research: a global view on tower
16 How to join 148 Small cell forum editorial
investing 154 Multi-operator small cells; interviews with
18 - 48
84 CIS market studies: Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Georgia ip.access, Spidercloud Wireless, Huawei and
Market
and Armenia Commscope
dynamics
18 TowerXchange Europe Analysis
36 Whos who 89 - 130 Towerco
business models 160-199 TowerXchange Meetup
Europe exhibition preview
90 Editorial: Not all towercos created equal 161 Abloy
99 Editorial: Operator led towercos 165 Acsys Technologies Ltd
TowerXchange Meetup calendar 105 Interview: Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex 168 Beijing Dynamic Power Co., Ltd.
111 Interview: Carlo Ramella, CEO, TowerTel 170 Bladon Jets
< TowerXchange Meetup Europe, April 5-6, 2017 (EI Towers) 174 Delmec
177 EnerSys
115 Interview: Nicola Parmeggianni, CEO, HighTel
< TowerXchange Meetup Americas, June 7-8, 2017 179 Intelsat
Towers
182 MediPower
118 Interview: Oscar Ciccheeti, CEO, INWIT 185 NorthStar Battery
< TowerXchange Meetup Africa, October 3-4, 2017
122 Editorial: FPS Towers site typology review 190 Siterra, An Accruent Product
< TowerXchange Meetup Asia, December 12-13, 2017 125 Interview: Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF 193 Tarantula
128 Interview: Nikolay Berdin, CEO, Service-Telecom 197 Vinson & Elkins
XX | TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017 | www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe | TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017 | 3
Introduction to Europe
Dear Colleague, moving tower markets in the world, and of course its Kind regards,
also completely unique. Key players need to balance
Two years ago, I was at the TowerXchange Africa sprawling networks with hotspots of dense urban Frances Rose, Head of Europe &
meetup in Johannesburg. I told the people I met that activity, they need to keep one eye on preparing for Kieron Osmotherly, Managing Director,
Id been brought on board to look into the European 5G while finding effective ways to reduce opex across TowerXchange
market and they laughed. Theres nothing going on their networks.
there I was told youre wasting your time with the
European market. Thats why the TowerXchange Meetup Europe has
split our discussion sessions into four clear topics:
My reply now? regional concerns, operational issues, strategic
opportunities and future networks. With a renewed
< Over 1.5bn of tower acquisitions to date focus on the impact of 5G and planning for network
< 44 towercos active in the region densification in key areas, the event will address 360
< 92,732 towers and sites potentially for sale degrees of tower topics.
< 228 senior execs in London for the inaugural
A whos who of European towers
TowerXchange Meetup Europe
With all of the leading European towercos already
Meetup Europe: The only dedicated space in confirmed to return, including American Tower Frances Rose, Head of Europe, TowerXchange
Europe for tower owners Company, Cellnex, INWIT, EI Towers, WIG, Arqiva,
Axion, Russian Towers and Vertical, as well as
TowerXchange is privileged to have been supporting infracos like CTIL and MBNL, leading investors, MNO
and reporting on this rapid European growth executives overseeing tower portfolios and the most
from the start, and Im delighted that the first relevant suppliers and service providers to the space,
Meetup Europe, held in London in April 2016, was theres no doubt that the TowerXchange Meetup
such a success. Thank you to our 59 speakers and Europe 2017 is the most influential meeting of the
roundtable hosts, 228 delegates and Meetup sponsors European tower calendar.
and exhibitors who brought their expertise and
experience to London for two days of intensive Were back at the Business Design Centre for 2017
networking and sharing. and our capacity is limited so make sure you book
your ticket right away to ensure a space.
Renewed focus: future proofing networks
We look forward to welcoming you to the Kieron Osmotherly, Founder & CEO, TowerXchange
Right now, Europe is one of the most exciting and fast TowerXchange Meetup Europe 2017.
4 | TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017 | www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe | TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017 | 3
FPS TOWERS IS FRANCES TOWERCO PURE PLAYER
WITH 2,400 TOWERS AND 20,000 ROOFTOPS
REACHING
YOUR
GOALS
Registration opens in September
for the 2nd FPS TowerCo Challenge
at the Eiffel Tower
the Saturday, March 18th 2017
Contact :
abalduzzi@verama.fr
FPS TOWERS / FRANCE / WWW.FPSTOWERS.FR / +33 (0)1 45 36 50 80

TowerXchange Meetup Europe Agenda
London | April 4-5, 2017
Day One | Tuesday 4 April
8:00 Coffee and registration 14:10 Roundtable session 2 11:00 Panel discussion: what is a European tower
AND Working Group: Tower Power in Europe worth?
9.00 Opening presentation and TowerXchange < David Bernal, Head of Business Development,
analysis 15:10 Coffee and networking sponsored by Tarantula Cellnex
< Kieron Osmotherly, CEO, TowerXchange < Alexandre Lucas, Executive Director, Goldman
< Frances Rose, Head of Europe, TowerXchange 15.40 Panel session: Integrating and optimising Sachs
tower portfolios < Christopher Ehrke, Partner, Arcus Infrastructure
9:45 TowerXchange CXO panel: The unique < Tony Killarney, CEO, Towercom Partners
European tower industry: the diversity of < Paolo Crocetti, Director of Institutional Affairs, < Jonathan Dann, Managing Director, RBC
contracts, typologies and business models EI Towers
< Malcolm Collins, CEO, CTIL < Egor Bykov, Head of Strategy, Vertical 11:00 Parallel session: small cells market sizing
< Alex Mestre, Business Development and < Cedric Lepolard, CFO, FPS Towers teach-in
International Director, Cellnex < Kieron Osmotherly, CEO, TowerXchange
< Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT 16.30 Panel Discussion: Operational efficiency and
green credentials < Zara Nathan, Head of Research, TowerXchange
< Scott Coates, CEO, Wireless Infrastructure Group
< Alexander Chub, President, Russian Towers < Eric Estrade, VPC, Vodafone Procurement Company
< Pat Coxen, CEO, MBNL 11:45 Roundtable session 3
< Frederic Zimer, Chairman, FPS Towers AND Working Group: Small Cells: Proving the
< Terry Rhodes, Co-Founder, Eaton Towers
business case for small cell roll-out
10.30 Keynote Interview: An update from Tobias 17:05 End of day one and networking drinks
Martinez, CEO, Cellnex
12:45 Networking lunch
19:30 TowerXchange optional dinner
10:50 Investor panel discussion: Creating and
growing value in European towers Day Two | 5 April 14:00 Roundtable session 4
Small Cells session
< Sachit Ahuja, Vice President, Tillman Global AND Small Cells Workshop - Indoor small cells as
Holdings 8:30 Welcome coffee a service: who will be the neutral host?
< Gaurav Bath, Managing Director, Global < Patrik Jakobson, Head of Network-as-a-Service,
Communications Group, Citi Investment 9:00 Panel Discussion: small cells and 5G are Ericsson
Banking coming - can your network be future-proofed?
< Arthur Akopyan, Managing Director; Partner, < scar Pallrols, Director Innovation and Product 15:00 Coffee and networking
UFG Asset Management Strategy, Cellnex
< Eric Crabtree, Chief Investment Officer, IFC < Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms, Arqiva 15.30 Panel Discussion: Outdoor diversified
< Scott Coates, CEO, Wireless Infrastructure Group network opportunities: small cells and DAS
11:30 Coffee and networking Street furniture and the role of the towerco
12.00 Roundtables session 1 10:00 Vendor session: Access Control < Marc Merlini, Business Development Director,
AND Working Group: RMS and site surveillance JCDecaux Link
10:30 Coffee and networking sponsored by
13.00 Networking lunch Siterra, An Accruent Product 16:30 End of Meetup
TowerXchange roundtables
< Russia: Arthur Akopyan, Managing Director; Partner, UFG Asset < Carve out or sell? Eric Crabtree, Chief Investment Officer, IFC
Management < Site security and liability: Colin Cunningham, Managing Director,
< Spain: Jorge Alberto Jimenez, President, Axion Cignal
< RMS and Tower Power working groups: Nikos Babalis, Operations < Health and safety requirements for towercos: Tony Killarney, CEO,
Director, MBNL Towercom
< 5G - a window of opportunity for towercos: Brian Burns, Principal, < Ireland: Donal OShaughnessy, Chairman, Cignal
Analysys Mason < Topic TBC: Dmitry Filatov, Director, Business Development, Service-
< Building a new towerco in a growing market: Egor Bykov, Head of Telecom
Strategy, Vertical < What will be the implications of 5G and how can you prepare?
< Planning and creating a robust small cell network: Scott Coates, CEO, Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms, Arqiva
Wireless Infrastructure Group < CIS: Sergey Plissak, Commercial Director, Logycom Group
< The future of rural networks: Malcolm Collins, CEO, CTIL < Monetising passive assets and the work needed to realise such a
< Asset or cost? Capturing value in towers: Marco Cordoni, Senior move: Thomas Jonell, CEO, National Towers (part of Vimpelcom Russia)
Partner, Analysys Mason < Italy: Paolo Crocetti, Director of Institutional Affairs, EI Towers -
TowerXchange roundtables
< Maximising the profitability of broadcast towers in telecoms < Raising capital in emerging tower markets: Rustem Umerov, CEO,
infrastructure: Carlo Ramella, Chairman, EI Towers Astem Group
< Options for raising capital and refinancing: Gaurav Bath, Managing < Comparing towercos in Europe, US and CALA: Jimmy Eisenstein,
Director, Global Communications Group, Citi Investment Banking Managing Director, Grupo TorreSur
< Scandinavia: Henrik Kamstrup, Partner, KPR Consult & Rikke < Spain: Senior Speaker, Telxius
Josephson, Site Manager, TT-Networks < UK: Pat Coxen, Managing Director, MBNL
< Creating a bespoke IT system to match towerco needs: Alexander < The politics and processes of carving out a towerco: James Maclaurin,
Chub, President, Russian Towers Advisor, Telecoms
< Beyond backhaul: investing in fibre: Christopher Ehrke, Partner, < Frame agreements: group level efficiency or hindrance to
Arcus Infrastructure Partners negotiation? Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Mgr Property,
< What next for MNO-backed towercos? Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT Property Management Services, Vodafone Procurement Company
< Topic TBC: Enda Hardiman, Managing Partner, Hardiman < Smart metering for towers: Eric Estrade, Principal Group Supply Chain
Communications Manager, Energy, Vodafone Procurement Company
< Contrasting tower valuations in Europe vs the rest of the world: < Germany: Gunther Stein, SVP Sales and Marketing, DFMG
Jonathan Dann, Managing Director, RBC < RMS and Tower Power Working Groups: Nigel Moss, COO, Wireless
< Small cells across Europe; relationships, regulations and synergies: Infrastructure Group
Oscar Pallrols, Director Innovation and Product Strategy, Cellnex < Assessing towercos from an investment perspective: what do
< France: Cedric Lepolard, CFO, FPS Towers investors look for? Mauricio Bolana, Partner, Antin Infrastructure Partners
< How do finanical markets evaluate towercos? Alexandre Lucas, < Topic TBC: Julian Plumstead, CCO EMEA, American Tower
Executive Director, Goldman Sachs < Towercos 101: Spencer Kurn, Partner, New Street Research
< Turkey: Nihat Narin, CEO, Global Tower & Murat Kuran, Non-Telco < MLAs in Europe and the UK Digital Economy Act: Natalie Lamb, Partner,
Services Sales and Business Development Director, Global Tower Vinson & Elkins
< Creating markets in emerging European economies: Nicolas < Multefire, Wi-Fi and small cells: implications of convergence for
Parmeggiani, CEO, HighTel Towers towercos: Caroline Gabriel, Research Director, Rethink Technology Research
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Technology working groups
Designed to enable peer-led evaluation of
technologies by tower owners themselves, seats at
the central table are strictly reserved for executives
Three unique buyer-led task forces tackling technology-related issues and limitations from MNOs and towercos or invited event sponsors
and exhibitors.

Our priority for these sessions is to elicit the
requirements and experiences of MNOs and
towercos - to learn from their challenges and
successes. If you are an MNO or towerco in
attendance we invite you to take part in these
highly constructive debates as we map out product
limitations, requirements and trials and act as a
focussed industry task force. Similarly, if you are in
the process of evaluating different suppliers prior
to making a procurement decision, the working
groups will equip you with vital information and key
questions to ask when assessing different vendors.

After information gathering from the MNOs and
towercos, we invite selected vendors to enter the
discussion, succinctly sharing their perspectives and
tailored solutions/ product developments to address
some of the issues raised.

All vendors have been notified prior to the event
as to their eligibility to join this session. If you have
not been notified, you will be unable to actively
participate in the discussion but we invite you to
Working group Time take a seat around the edge of the room to listen
to the session. Please contact Annabelle Mayhew
RMS, site management and site surveillance 12.00 - 13.00, Tuesday 4 April
amayhew@towerxchange.com to discuss eligibility.

Back-up power and energy efficiency 14.10 - 15.10, Tuesday 4 April
Due to the popularity of these sessions, we request
Small cells and DAS 11.45 - 12.45, Wednesday 5 April that only one person per company join each
working group
TowerXchange Investors Club
Including the New Street Research
Tower Conference

New Street Research is hosting an invitation-

only tower conference in conjunction with
Last year, TowerXchange brought together 28 investment firms in European infrastructure with 36 TowerXchange on April 4th in London. This will
European tower owners for a series of meetings throughout the two-day Meetup. be a unique opportunity to gain insights into the
tower industry that are not accessible to investors
This year, in association with our partners at New Street Research, we are hosting almost 40 European at traditional sell-side or industry conferences.
towercos, each of them representing a distinct and significant investment opportunity, at a Meetup in
London on the 4th & 5th April.
New Street Research have arranged a day of
As telecom infrastructure becomes an increasingly attractive investment proposition for many funds and PE meetings with C-level management teams from
firms, and the transactional and IPO landscape gathers momentum can you afford not to be hear first hand the largest tower companies, including both
from at the European listed towercos, and to be privy to insights from the private sector? towercos speaking at the Meetup and those
invited along as VIP guests.
Some are looking for capital injection, some may be seeking M&A advisory services. We will work with you
to deliver a sizeable portion of due diligence activity, whether you are looking to invest or advise.
Additionally, New Street Researchs attendees
What is the TowerXchange Investors Club? will have full access to the Meetup to network
with over 200 executives from the infrastructure
Held to complement the baseline market information shared during the TowerXchange Meetup
ecosystem in intimate round table settings.
roundtables, the TowerXchange Investors Club pre-arranges private one-to-one meetings between
towercos and investors, as well as hosting invitation-only briefings arranged by our partners at New Street
If you would like to be considered for this
Research. These confidential meetings and briefings will give investors the opportunity to open dialogue
enhanced content, please contact:
with CXOs of Europes towercos and assess potential new investment opportunities in European telecoms
frose@towerxchange.com
infrastructure. To participate, you must be registered for the TowerXchange Meetup Europe.
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How can I join?
Early booking is strongly recommended
All previous Meetups have SOLD OUT
Register today to guarantee your involvement
www.towerxchange.com/meetup/meetup-europe/apply-to-attend
TowerXchange Meetup Dinner

amayhew@towerxchange.com Tuesday 4 April, 7.30pm
Cabana, 56 Upper St, London
3 course dinner and drinks
Cost: 60
+44 (0) 7423 512588
Continue the days networking in a relaxed and
informal setting. The TowerXchange Networking
Group bookings now available for towercos Dinner is always a welcome highlight of the event
and sells out ahead of time.
For 2017, operational and technical managers are invited to join our regular C-level attendance and
participate in dedicated roundtables and activities. Individual passes are 1,500 - to register a team of In 2017, we have reserved space for 70 people at
four or more please contact Annabelle Mayhew on amayhew@towerxchange.com Cabana restaurant, on the doorstep of the Business
Design Centre. Join VIPs and delegates for drinks
and a three course meal and be sure not to miss out
Complimentary passes for MNOs on an important networking opportunity.
Whether responsible for M&A, strategy, network operations, procurement and supply chain, energy,
A nominal fee of 60 is required to cover food and
site acquisition or operations - a limited number of complimentary passes exist for mobile network
beverages for the evening, please select the dinner
operators. Register online or contact Annabelle Mayhew for more information option when registering online.
Vendor participation limited Prior registration is essential: please note the

dinner will sell out and we are unable to take
In order to maintain the ratio of buyers to sellers, vendors (excluding MSPs) are limited to two full registrations on the day.
access and two expo only access passes and attending representatives must be director level or higher.
TowerXchanges analysis of the Germany
Not even two months into 2017 and its been a busy
time already for European towers.
independent tower market in Europe

Deutsche Funkturm 27,000
Spain
Cellnex 7,413 7,725 2,300 725 540
Italy In January, Cellnex closed their third deal with
RTRS 16,000
First Tower Company 14,000
UK their French operator partners Bouygues. This third
Telxius 11,000 2,350 2,804 Turkey deal is split into two phases: the first phases is the
Europes 19INWIT
towercos11,200
with >1,000 assets Source: TowerXchange
Ukraine
Arqiva
Germany acquisition of 1,800 existing and operational towers,
10,550
Deutsche Funkturm 27,000 FranceGermany
Spain for which Cellnex have paid 500mn. Cellnex
National Tower Company 10,400
Cellnex 7,413
Deutsche Funkturm 7,725 2,30027,000725 540
Spain
Czech Republic
Italy
Global Tower
RTRS
8,067
Cellnex 16,000
7,413
1,201 828 115
7,725 2,300 725 540 states that this portfolio is made up of urban sites,
TDF 7,398 IrelandItaly
UK
First Tower Company
MTS Towers
RTRS 14,000 16,000
which TowerXchange believe to be largely rooftop
5,500
First Tower Company11,000
Telxius 2,350 2,804
14,000 Russia UK
Turkey
American Tower
INWIT
2,197* 2,482*
Telxius11,200 11,000 2,350 2,804 Turkey
Netherlands
structures. The second portfolio provides for the
CETIN 4,800
Ukraine
Arqiva
EI Towers
INWIT10,550
3,200
11,200
PolandUkraine
France
construction of 1,200 new towers between 2017 and
National Tower Company Arqiva10,400 10,550
Rai Way
National
Global Tower
2,300
Tower Company 10,400 Czech France
Denmark
Republic 2022, in a deal worth 354mn.
8,067 1,201 828 115
Russian Towers Global
2,400Tower Czech Republic
Slovakia
TDF 7,398 8,067 1,201 828 115 Ireland
Wireless Infrastructure Group 1,900 50TDF
FinlandIreland
50 7,398
MTS Towers
Vertical 1,600
5,500 Russia This acquisition falls into line with Cellnexs
American Tower MTS Towers2,197*5,500 2,482* Russia
American Tower5000 2,197* 2,482* 15000 Kazakhstan
Netherlands ambitions to become a market leader in Europe,
CETIN 4,800 10000 20000 25000 30000 35000
Netherlands
CETIN 4,800 Serbia
Poland
EI Towers 3,200
EI Towers 3,200 Poland not just for macro towers but smart urban
Rai Way 2,300 Austria
Denmark
Russian Towers 2,400
Rai Way 2,300 Denmark infrastructure in readiness for the roll-out of 5G
Russian Towers 2,400
Greece
Slovakia
Wireless Infrastructure Group 1,900 50 50 Slovakia technology. Cellnex CEO Tobias Martinez stated
Wireless Infrastructure Group 1,900 50 50 Lithuania
Finland
Vertical 1,600 Finland
Vertical 1,600
Albania
Kazakhstan that the deal positions Cellnex in France as an
5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 30000 35000 Kazakhstan
5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 30000 Belarus
35000 Serbia infrastructure operator with an attractive size and
* Based on the assumption that announced deals will close in 2017 Serbia
Turkish Republic of
Austria coverage to accompany the current and future
Austria
Figure 1(b): Europes telecom and broadcast towercos with <1,000 towers Greece
Northern Cyprus
Greece roll-out of technologies and equipment for mobile
Lithuania
CALA Lithuania broadband access providers particularly 5G.
1000
AlbaniaAlbania
Belarus Belarus
800
In February American Towers JV with Dutch
TurkishTurkish
Republic of
Republic of
investor PGGM, ATC Europe, closed their deal
600 Northern Cyprus Cyprus
Northern
CALA with French towerco FPS Towers, confirming
1000
CALA
300 79
400 1000
860 800 their commitment to growth in Europe adding
700
800 800
584
377
2482 French sites to their 2031 German ones and
200 400 377 377
300
200 187 180 156 150 140 47
signalling the likelihood of further acquisitions in
40 40 33 30
120 113 100 100 100 75
600
0
600
Europe over the course of 2017.
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to US investor KKR for 1.3bn. After a failed IPO Figure 2: Forecasted breakdown of ownership of Europes ~600,000
attempt in September 2016, their subsequent telecom tower and rooftop structures 2016-2020
regrouping and ambitions for a private sale drew
interest from high profile investors including 600,000
Ardian, CVC and the Singaporean sovereign wealth
MNO Captive
fund GIC. KKR, who have been linked to the bidding 500,000
Number of towers
in several European tower sales over the last few
JV infraco
years, have now acquired a stake in a diverse 400,000 275,397
290,397
portfolio across the continent, as well as assets in
75,551
Latin America. 300,000 300,397 76,551 Operator-led
52,125 infraco
200,000 378,797 348,897 66,070 52,125
A couple of processes have officially kicked off in Independent
2017, with Swiss operator Sunrise looking for a 49,125 266,297
78,070 68,070 251,297 towerco
buyer for their 2,000 towers - thought to be almost 100,000
67,125 49,125 184,778
all of their infrastructure. They may have some
difficulty given number one operator Swisscoms 97,278
75,867
dominance in both telecoms and infrastructure, but
theres no denying the Swiss markets attractiveness Q416 Q417 Q418 Q419 Q420
for steady and reliable growth. Source: TowerXchange
Teasers are also reportedly out for the sale of negotiating process. We expect to see these towers tower industry and, insofar as anyone can define
12,400 VimpelCom towers in Central Asia, with moving into independent towercos hands by early the destination, it remains a long drive! Hear our
TAP Advisors believed to be running the process. Q2 2017 at the latest. latest research and analysis at the 2nd Annual
With 4G only rolled out to half the population in TowerXchange Meetup Europe on April 4-5 in
Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia, and with the And of course, there remains plenty of time for London we hope to see you there!
Ukraine still lagging in 3G rollout, demand for more deals to get underway in Europe. With
data will soar and demand for points of service in Cellnex and ATC Europe searching for the right The current state of play in Europe
these markets could double in the next ten years. opportunity, capital queuing up for the right vehicle
And with few existing towercos in the region, and towercos including the Dutch Open Tower, Lets review the current state of the European tower
VimpelComs process could inaugurate a new era of Germanys tower behemoth Deutsche Funkturm industry country by country. A couple of caveats
shared infrastructure in Eurasia. and the UKs biggest towerco Arqiva all exploring before you start reading: firstly, TowerXchange
their options, 2017 is still looking like it will be a includes Russia, the CIS and former CIS States in
In Russia, the process for the sale of VimpelComs very interesting year indeed. our definition of Europe. Secondly, our definition
10,400 towers is believed to be nearing a conclusion, of a tower is slightly different in Europe when
despite slowing due to turnover in key roles in the The roadmap is still being drafted for the European presenting tower counts, we are always interested
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Figure 3: breakdown of ownership of Europes ~600,000 telecom tower 3-5% of towers and rooftops in the Ukraine are
and rooftop structures as at the end of Q3 2016 shared, mostly at nominal prices or under barter
arrangements and further 1,000+ leased third party
structures, such as smoke stacks and water towers,
81,427 are utilised by Ukraines MNOs.
As the number one MNO in the country,
Vimpelcoms Kyivstar owns around 7,400 towers,
MNO captive all of which could be transferred to independent
90,131 towerco ownership in the next few months.
JV infraco
371,224 Kazakhstan: also emerging from recession, oil
Operator-led infraco wealth drives a high GDP for the region. The recent
58,600 merger of Altel and Tele2 means significant network
Independent towerco integration is just getting underway. Finturs Kcell
remains market leader, with VimpelComs Kar-Tel a
close second.
Source: TowerXchange
Altel had a 4G monopoly until Summer
in sites and structures that can accommodate CIS 2016, after which date VimpelCom and Kcell
multiple tenants, and which towercos might Until this point the CIS has been relatively low on commenced a shared 4G rollout. This partnership
consider investible. While our tower statistics on tower activity, however this could well be about to notwithstanding, only a very small proportion of
emerging markets focus on ground based towers, change as Vimpelcom bring their towers to market Kazakhstans existing towers are shared: less than
in Europe we are equally interested in counting in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Armenia. 5%.
rooftop sites, but we exclude multi-tenant DAS, Ukraine: Emerging from recession after political
microcells and small cells from headline counts, instability, Ukraine is a growth market with 3G The only formal towerco TowerXchange has
at least until a single small cell can be shared and yet to be extensively rolled out and 4G still on the identified in the country is Logycom, which has
monetised to multiple tenants. horizon, meaning a potential 2,500 PoP could be secured a build to suit contract for one of the MNOs,
added in the next three years. while we have heard reports of small portfolios
TowerXchange tower counts are the result of (~10) of privately owned sites. Alongside the usual
qualitative market research and the aggregation Last year Turkcell carved out and transferred 811 assortment of water towers, smoke stacks and
of our own and other research firms work as lifecell towers to UkrTOWER, the local subsidiary oil industry structures, MNOs also co-locate on a
such they should be treated as estimates. We assert of their captive towerco Global Tower. UkrTOWERs number of Kazteleradios broadcast towers.
copyright over data sourced to TowerXchange you current site count is 1,201, including a number of
will need to request our permission to quote our in building solutions, and the company boasts a TowerXchange have never encountered such a wide
data and there may be a charge to do so. healthy tenancy ratio. Outside of UkrTOWER, only deviation between suggested site counts

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3-5% of towers and rooftops in the Ukraine are wide deviation between suggested site counts micro sites. CETINs business model includes all
shared, mostly at nominal prices or under barter from multiple sources on a market, so there is a the physical assets which used to belong to O2,
arrangements and further 1,000+ leased third party significant margin for error in our site counts. including active equipment and 38,000km of fibre,
structures, such as smoke stacks and water towers, While all parties agree VimpelCom has around the MNO having been acquired by PPF and the
are utilised by Ukraines MNOs. 3,500 sites, around 60% of which are rooftops and infrastructure business spun off. CETIN absorbs
40% ground based towers, our best estimate is that O2s RANsharing venture with T-Mobile, which
As the number one MNO in the country, Kcell owns around 5,500 towers and rooftops, with operates under the MORAN model.
Vimpelcoms Kyivstar owns around 7,400 towers, Altel and Tele2 combining a total of around 4,200
all of which could be transferred to independent towers and rooftops. Third party structures make Denmark
towerco ownership in the next few months. up around 30% of Kazakhstans mobile networks, Infrastructure sharing is State mandated in
and total at least 1,500, perhaps significantly more. Denmark, where Telia and Telenor formed active
Kazakhstan: also emerging from recession, oil infrastructure sharing joint venture TT-Network.
wealth drives a high GDP for the region. The recent Georgia and Armenia consist of around 3,000 and There are around 4,500 towers in Denmark, with
merger of Altel and Tele2 means significant network 2,200 sites respectively. Around 65% of sites are co-location management agreements managed
integration is just getting underway. Finturs Kcell rooftops, but less alternate site typologies are used through KPR Consult. Falck operates a small
remains market leader, with VimpelComs Kar-Tel a than in Kazakhstan: just a handful of broadcast towerco in the country with around 75 towers,
close second. tower co-locations. Vimpelcom are believed to be while Teracom operates the countrys broadcast
bringing around 800 and 700 towers to market towers.
Altel had a 4G monopoly until Summer respectively - offering a towerco a chance to capture
2016, after which date VimpelCom and Kcell close to 25% of the towers in each market. There is little possibility of sale and leasebacks in
commenced a shared 4G rollout. This partnership Belarus: Global Tower has recently taken control Denmark in the short term, but dont discount the
notwithstanding, only a very small proportion of of Turkcells towers in Belarus, where they have possibility in the medium to long term.
Kazakhstans existing towers are shared: less than owned subsidiary BeST since 2008. Global Tower
5%. currently operates 828 towers in the country. Finland
There are around 10,000 towers in Finland,
The only formal towerco TowerXchange has Czech Republic around half of which are owned by incumbent
identified in the country is Logycom, which has With an ongoing project to decommission 35-40% of operator Sonera, with the balance evenly
secured a build to suit contract for one of the MNOs, the countrys parallel infrastructure, TowerXchange distributed across the other MNOs Elisa and DNA.
while we have heard reports of small portfolios estimate there are around 10,200 active cell sites An active infrastructure sharing joint venture
(~10) of privately owned sites. Alongside the usual in the Czech Republics telecom network, of which between Sonera and DNA increases the efficiency
assortment of water towers, smoke stacks and only around a quarter are ground based towers, of providing coverage to the sparsely populated
oil industry structures, MNOs also co-locate on a with the balance being rooftops and IBS. Northeastern region.
number of Kazteleradios broadcast towers.
CETIN (esk Telekomunikan Infrastruktura), an Digita operates Finlands broadcast network, with
TowerXchange have never encountered such a infraco carved out of O2, has 4,800 towers and 750 27 high masts and 480 smaller masts.
France What is the breakdown of the high sites used by the French telecom
There are just over 25,000 ground based towers in industry? And who owns them?
France, of which 55% remain operator-captive. The
remainder are divided among three independent 13
towercos: broadcast-telecom hybrid TDF has 4,865 12 10
11
telecom towers, FPS Towers (acquired by ATC
8 9
Europe) has 2,482, and Cellnex are in the process of 14
buying into the French market with 2,300 existing 7
Bouygues towers and a further 1,200 in the pipeline. 6
5
Network planners supplement their ground based 1
tower network with sites on 7,500 other ground
based structures and ~15,000 rooftops. TDF and 4
FPS currently provide 10% of those rooftops sites,
but both are positioning themselves to play a larger
role in this segment of the ecosystem, and Cellnexs 3
most recent acquisition will make around 1,450 new
rooftops available for colocation. 2
In December 2016 American Tower announced the

acquisition of FPS Towers for 697mn, a deal which
closed in February 2017, gaining them a significant
foothold in the market and putting them into
competition with French incumbent tower owner
TDF. FPSs ambitious plans for the French market Ground based towers Rooftops structures with telecom equipment
are expected to be capex-heavy over the next two 1. Orange 8,100 9. Rooftops sites sourced directly by MNOs 13,090
to three years, and we will watch TDFs response to 2. SFR 5,300 10. Rooftop sites provided by TDF 301
this ambitious competitor over the coming months. 3. TDF 4,865 11. Rooftop sites provided by FPS Towers 159
4. FPS/American Tower 2,482 12. Rooftop sites sold to Cellnex 1,450
5. Cellnex (acquired from Bouygues) 850
Meanwhile, Cellnex fairly quietly acquired 500
6. Free 350 Rooftops without telecom equipment installed,
towers from Bouygues Telecom in two transactions
7. Other structures not belonging to towercos or but for which a towerco has a commercialisation
in 2016, the first of which was for 230 towers at a MNOs 2,900 agreement:
valuation of 80mn and the subsequent tranche for 13. TDF 2,985
270 towers for 697mn, and in January 2017 they 8. Other ground based structures 7,500 14. FPS Towers 20,000
signed a deal with the aforementioned governing
Sources: TowerXchange research, ANFR, FPS Towers, TDF
the transfer of 1,800 existing sites and 1,200 new
Estimated breakdown of ground based towers and rooftops in Germany sites (mostly rooftops) transferred from Telefnica
in July 2015.
Deutsche Funkturm report that they are building

8 a significant number of new macro locations per
4 5 year; with three to four years of LTE rollout still to
Ground based towers:
come, followed by 5G, there are drivers for modest
1. Deutsche Funkturm 8,000
organic growth.
2. Vodafone 4,000
3 3. Telxius 2,350
Having seen only negative organic growth since
1 4. American Tower 2,197
they bought 2,031 towers from KPN in 2012,
Rooftops:
American Towers German site count jumped by
5. Deutsche Funkturm 15,936
156 in Q216. Rumours that they were seeking third
6. Omega Towers 7,700
party investment turned out to be grounded, with
7. Vodafone 18,000
2 6 8. Telefnica 11,968
Dutch pension fund PGGM paying 250mn for a
49% stake in their German operations, resulting
7 in a joint venture, ATC Europe which has already
made an acquisition in the shape of Frances FPS
Source: TowerXchange presentation, TowerXchange and RBC Capital Markets data Towers. With both Deutsche Funkturm cooling on
the idea of an IPO, it may be that there is potential
build towers for a total of 354mn, giving them a Telefnica transferred 2,350 German towers into for American Tower to consolidate their position in
good foothold in the market and a solid anchor their towerco Telxius in a deal valued at 587mn. the German market in 2017.
tenant. After pulling their IPO due to low investor interest,
Telefnica has since agreed the sale of a 40% stake Just 16,532 of Germanys 70,136 cell sites are
While there is fierce competition for subscribers to investor KKR for 1.3bn. ground based towers the rest are rooftops. The
among Frances four MNOs, which has driven down investability of German rooftop sites remains
ARPU and tightened margins, there is a healthy Meanwhile, Deutsche Telekom are gearing up questionable: American Tower currently operates
culture of infrastructure sharing, with almost 5,000 to monetise their towerco Deutsche Funkturm, only ground based towers, Telefnica transferred
MNO towers bilaterally shared, driving tenancy enthusiasm for an IPO is rumoured to have cooled only their ground based towers to Telxius, while
ratios on ground based towers to an average of 1.5. after the Telxius and Global Tower IPOs failed to Telefnica has transferred 7,700 sites to Deutsche
fly, but a sale to a strategic investor could still be Funkturm (Omega Towers) with no financial
Germany on the cards. Deutsche Funkturm operates over compensation paid. Most of those 7,700 sites were
The German tower market may be characterised 27,000 sites in Germany, of which around 8,000 are rooftops, and as many as half of them could be
by slow growth, but it is entering a period of rapid ground based towers with the rest being rooftops. decommissioned as they were duplicate sites from
change. Subsidiary Omega Towers manages 7,700 further Telefnicas merger with KPN.
Deutsche Telekom and Vodafone each has around Who owns Irelands 4,000 towers? Source: TowerXchange
25-27,000 sites in total, whereas Telefnica has close
to 39,000 Telefnica plans to consolidate their
400 377 3 + O2 (Hutchison)
network to a similar size to their rivals.
Vodafone
There are a total of around 23,000 co-locations 377 Meteor (Eir)
in Germany, most being on Deutsche Funkturm 500 Towercom
and American Towers ground based towers, with
150 Shared Access
tenancy ratios estimated at 2.5 and 1.8 respectively.
There are few co-locations on German rooftops 113* ESB Telecoms
as demands for supplementary payments from 100 2RN (RTE)
landlords ruin the economics. 100 Cignal*
800 70
CIE
50
Greece 40
While there are no independent towercos in the Highpoint (Obelisk)
12,000 site Greek market at present, tough economic Hibernian (Britannia)
conditions and the dominance of market leading 1,100 Wireless Infrastructure Group
Cosmote may prompt a sale and leaseback in the
Cellcom
medium term.
*113 owned towers with additional ground lease income on 400 plots of land on which Cignal and 3rd party towers sit
Cosmotes competitors Wind may have an appetite Who owns Italys 47,218 telecom and broadcast sites?
to monetise their towers, while the other MNO in
Telecom Broadcast
Greece Vodafone has less financial incentive. Joint 2,000
venture infraco VICTUS Networks currently manages
700 11,200
Vodafone Greece and Wind Hellas sites. There are INWIT
around 10,500 tenants on VICTUS Networks 7,000 Vodafone
sites. Decommissioning could see VICTUS Networks 2,600 2,300 2,300
Cellnex
site count fall to 6,000 and the tenancy ratio rise
accordingly. Hutchison
~7,000
Wind
Broadcast towerco Digea owns 156 towers in Greece. 11,400
TowerTel
EI Towers
Ireland Others
60% of Irelands 4,000 cell sites sit in the hands of the 7,725 Rai Way
countrys three MNOs: Vodafone, Meteor and 3. Source: TowerXchange
The Irish market is still restructuring in the wake Estimated tower ownership and rooftop usage in The Netherlands
of 3s acquisition of O2. The consolidation realigned
network sharing partnerships previously between 12,173
Vodafone and 3 (NetShare) and between Meteor
and O2 (Mosaic), the latter of which remains in
place with 3 joining the alliance, putting downward 650 Open Tower Company
pressure on current and prospective future tenancy 860
ratios. Shere Group/Cellnex
Protelindo / Cellnex
With little prospect of sale and leasebacks in
Other towercos (inc WIG)
Ireland, the most likely source of tower transactions
remains consolidation among the ten independent 600 Vodafone/Liberty Global
tower companies, broadcast operators and public
sector players.
460 T-Mobile
Rooftops
Italy 200 261
With the merger of 3 and WIND now announced,
and Iliad confirmed as a new entrant into the
Italian market, all eyes are on how this will play Source: TowerXchange
out. Already, Iliad owner Xavier Niel, known as

TIM retains a 60% equity stake in INWIT, with the count to 11,200. INWIT raised tenancy ratios by .08
the enfant terrible of the French telecoms sector,
balance having been floated on the Milan Stock to 1.67 over the same period. By the end of 2018,
is locked in a war of words with the incumbent
Exchange in June 2015, and had initiated a process INWIT forecasts driving tenancy ratios to around
operators, who fear the introduction of new
to sell some or all of their retained equity, with EI 1.9, decommissioning over 1,000 sites, and building
business models and aggressive price wars.
Towers and Cellnex (in partnership with Italys as many as 500 new sites, primarily for TIMs 4G
Although no set plan of action is in place for Italys
infrastructure, its widely believed that Iliads leading infrastructure F2i) leading the race to rollout.
requirements will free up around 5,000 towers, acquire the company.
which may well come to market in the coming The process to monetise INWIT further has been The continents largest pan-European towerco,
months and which will be of interest to several halted, ostensibly because the TIM management Cellnex has rollup up several small towercos in
parties. team believes that several value adds have yet to Italy, but the lions share of their portfolio comes
reach fruition and are not yet reflected in INWITs from the acquisition of Winds towerco Galata, and
Currently, INWIT, Cellnex and EI Towers TowerTel valuation. their 7,377 towers, for 693mn in 2015. At the end
lead the telecom tower market in Italy, where of Q316, Cellnex operated 7,725 sites in Italy, a net
towercos own just under half the total sites, and In the last year INWIT has decommissioned around increase of 17 sites in the last year, with build-to-
where decommissioning may outstrip organic 300 sites, and added 82 (including the acquisition suit slightly outstripping decommissioning.
growth in the coming years. of three small towercos), bringing their Q216 site Both INWIT and Cellnex remain bullish about
the potential of small cells in Italy, highlighted by Mobile tower ownership in Portugal
Cellnexs acquisition of CommsCon for 18.65mn in
June 2016. 4,700
Cellnexs principal rival in the INWIT process had
been EI Towers, whose telecom-focused subsidiary 1,300
TowerTel has built and acquired a portfolio of MEO
1,000 telecom towers with an aggregate EV of up
to 55mn, ~300 of which have been added through Vodafone
several small acquisitions.
3,000
NOS
EI Towers continues to court a much bigger deal: Alternate site typologies
the acquisition of Italys other broadcast towerco, 2,500
RAIWAY, which owns around 2,300 towers, again
with some MNO tenancies. Consolidation would
represent another opportunity to create significant
efficiencies through decommissioning around Source: TowerXchange
60% of Italys broadcast towers are in overlapping
locations. This merger is believed to be back on the countrys 3,031 ground based towers are already Polish network, a little under half of which are
cards after positive comments from Italian officials, owned by towercos. Market leader Open Tower towers, with the rest being rooftops.
despite some legal questions being raised when the Company has around 850 towers, plus access to
deal was first mooted in 2015. over 1,000 electricity pylons and is rumoured to Poland has more subscribers per tower than the
be looking for buyers in 2017. UK headquartered majority of other countries in Europe, indicating
The Netherlands Wireless Infrastructure Group is also present in The both potential demand for more towers, and
Only 20% of The Netherlands 15,204 cell sites are Netherlands. indicating the extent of decommissioning
macro cell sites, with the balance being rooftops, that has already taken place in the country. A
DAS and small cells. KPN sold their towers in four tranches between balanced, competitive MNO market amplifies the
2008-12, while Vodafone and T-Mobile retain attractiveness of the Polish market to towercos.
Cellnex has acquired Protelindos 261 Dutch towers around 1,250 towers between them. New entrant T-Mobile and Orange share passive and active
for 109mn, (and is now marketing the towers fourth MNO Tele2 has few if any towers, preferring infrastructure in Poland through 50-50 joint venture
under the name Towerlink Netherlands), and a to rely on co-location and a RANsharing deal with NetWorkS! Initiated in 2011, the partnership
further 464 as part of their deal with Shere Group. T-Mobile. was intended to last 15 years, but there has been
There is no duplication between the two sites. speculation that one or both party might wish to
Cellnex own 725 towers, or 23.9% of the macro Poland exit the venture and sell towers to a third party.
towers in The Netherlands, where 1,781 (59%) of the There are around 22,000 telecom structures in the While NetWorkS! operates around 13,000 towers,
Estimated breakdown of ground based towers and rooftops in Russia the assets remain on T-Mobile and Oranges own
balance sheets. Outside of the NetWorkS! venture,
9 as little as 2% of Polands towers are shared
between multiple MNOs.
7 8
6
Alinda Capital Partners owned Emitel is the
1 Ground based towers: Polish broadcast towerco, operating 377 sites and
1. First Tower Company (MegaFon) 14,000 diversifying into telecom.
5 2. National Tower Company (VimpelCom) 10,400
3. MTS Towers 5,500 Turnkey infrastructure provider ECS is leveraging
4. MTS retained towers 4,900 new capital from CEE Equity Partners to move into
5. Tele2 Russia 8,500 tower ownership and leasing.
6. Russian Towers 2,300
4 7. Vertical 1,600 Portugal
2 8. Other independent towercos 1,000 The Portuguese tower market has been dormant
since rumors of a prospective sale and leaseback
3 9. Rooftops 75,000 by Portugal Telecom over two years ago. Little
has been heard since Altice acquired PT in 2015.
However, Portugal has started to appear on the
radar of one of Europes largest towercos a market
Estimated ownership of Spains 48,997 telecom and broadcast sites to watch!
Romania
7,413 Romania hosts a competitive four MNO market,
12,500 584
with no independent towerco activity to date.
Cellnex Orange and Vodafone Romania operate a
joint venture infrastructure sharing company
Axion
called Netgrid Telecom (formerly Ovidu
Orange Telecommunications).
Telxius
17,500
11,000 Vodafone Despite being one of the poorest countries in
Europe, ARPU is relatively high in Romania at
around 20, which means there is little financial
imperative for the countrys MNOs to monetise their
towers.
Who owns/operates the UKs Figure four: Estimated tower and rooftop counts for selected markets in
38,500 active cell sites? Europe
Co-locations
Independent
Denmark Kazakhstan Czech Republic
towercos 7,000 10,200
4,500
14,500
Ireland Greece Nether- Poland UK Italy France Spain Germany Russia
4,000 12,000 lands 22,000 38,500 47,218 47,347 48,997 70,136 117,700
MBNL 15,204
CTIL
12,000 Portugal Finland
12,000 6,800
Ukraine
10,000 12,000
500 500
Shared Source: TowerXchange Source: TowerXchange
Russia early in Q2 2017. MegaFon has carved out First as Russias towers come to market, with Russian
TowerXchange estimate there are around 42,700 Tower Company with a possible view to a future Towers expected to secure the VimpelCom towers.
ground based towers and 75,000 rooftop structures sale to a strategic buyer. MTS has injected part of Russian Towers is also undergoing a period of
across the vast Russian landscape. Each of Russias their portfolio, 5,500 towers, into MTS Towers sustained organic growth, growing from ~1,900
four MNOs is utilising tower company business with a view to making the towers available for towers to ~2,300 in 2016, with a further 200 towers
models, but in contrasting ways. co-location, but has declared an intent to retain in the pipeline for early 2017. Newcomer Service-
ownership of the venture. Meanwhile, rumors Telecom is also keen to expand rapidly, with talks of
VimpelCom has put tower monetisation at the heart persist that Tele2 Russia are selling their ~8,500 consolidation in the Russian market and ambitious
of a balance sheet restructuring plan, with the towers. plans to grow organically by leveraging their
creation of National Tower Company, into which relationships with Russian MNOs.
they have injected their ~10,400 Russian towers, Leading local towercos Russian Towers and
the sale of National Tower Company to a Russian Vertical, as well as the Russian Direct Investment Serbia
independent towerco is expected to be announced Fund, are all expected to be prominent bidders Managed service provider Konsing Group, which
Major towerco equity deals and listings since 2016 Source: TowerXchange
Year Seller Entity and # towers Buyer/Stock Exchange Equity% Deal Value
2017 Telefonica Telxius 16,000 KKR 40% 1,300,000,000
2016 American Tower American Tower Germany 2,197 PGGM 49% Undisclosed
2016 Antin Infrastructure Partners Axion 584 AMP Capital 100% Undisclosed
2015 Telecom Italia INWIT 11,200 MIB 40% 875,300,000
2015 Abertis Cellnex 15,091 MCE 66% 2,138,000,000
2015 Coillte Telecoms assets 300 InfraVia Capital Partners 100% 70,000,000
also owns a portfolio of 47 sites, counts all three Cellnex has seen fast growth in its telecoms arm, Sweden
MNOs among their client base (Telekom Serbia, deriving 385mn of its 707mn revenue from There are no independent tower companies
Telenor and Telekom Austria). telecoms, an increase of 27% yoy. In 2016 they in Sweden, largely because network sharing is
expanded from two to five countries, spending efficiently managed through three network sharing
Slovakia 668mn on the acquisition of Commscon in Italy, joint ventures.
Broadcast towerco Towercom, which has Protelindo Netherlands, Shere Group in the UK and
around 700 sites, was acquired by Macquarie Netherlands and 500 towers from Bouygues telecom SUNAB is a 50-50 3G joint venture between Tele2
Infrastructure Fund in 2013. Towercom turns in France. and TeliaSonera which runs the MOCN RANsharing
over in excess of 50mn annually and includes model; Net4Mobility, another 50-50 joint venture,
O2, T-Mobile and Orange among their customer In 2016, Telefnica transferred 11,000 Spanish runs Telenor and Tele2s combined 2G and 4G
base. Towercom completed the roll up of TBDS, towers and rooftops to their towerco Telxius for an network; and 3GIS is a joint venture running
RK Tower and Rdiokomunikcie in 2008. undisclosed sum ahead of ahead of their planned Telenor and 3s 3G network outside of Swedens
IPO, however, the IPO was scrapped in October 2016 largest cities.
Spain due to lack of interest in the market. Telefnica has
Teracom operates Swedens broadcast tower
39% of the 48,997 broadcast and telecom towers since agreed the sale of a 40% stake in Telxius to
network. There are a little over 10,000 sites in
and rooftops in Spain are owned by towercos, investment firm KKR for 1.3bn.
Sweden.
led by Telefnicas new towerco Telxius and
European market-maker Cellnex. One is AMP Capital has agreed a deal to acquire 100% of
Turkey
headquartered in Madrid, the other Barcelona, so Axion from current owners Antin Infrastructure.
Turkcell, Turkeys largest mobile network operator,
the battle for tenancies could be as fierce as any Axion operates 584 broadcast towers, with some
announced plans to list their towers unit, Global
El Classico! telecom co-location, 70% of which are in Andaluca.
Tower, in April 2016. However in October 2016
Turkcell decided to postpone the IPO at the eleventh gains, were the opportunity to present itself. planning a 5bn sale, abandoning previous plans to
hour, citing global political uncertainty and the The UK has a tower market structure unlike any list on the London Stock Exchange.
possibility of cyber attacks. TowerXchange believes other in the world. Independent towercos, headed
that Turkcell planned to list 25% of the business by Arqiva and Wireless Infrastructure Group and TowerXchange has not yet picked up any
and was perhaps hoping for a more Cellnex-like Shere Group (recently acquired by Cellnex), own independent towerco activity in the following
valuation multiple than was likely to be achieved. 38% of the 38,500 active towers in the UK. The European markets, thus they have yet to be studied
With Turkcell making ambitious plans to support balance are contained within two joint venture in detail by our team: Albania, Austria, Belarus,
revenue growth through expansion into overseas infracos: CTIL, which operates Vodafone and O2s Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria,
markets, an IPO or sale is certainly not off the network (Telefnica), and MBNL, which performs a Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Macedonia,
agenda, however, and we believe there may be similar function for EE (now BT) and 3 (Hutchison). Montenegro, Norway and Switzerland
considerable value in Turkcell identifying a strategic CTIL and MBNL are both the primary clients of
partner who could support their expansion plans. the UKs independent towercos, and site sharing
businesses in their own right. Their business
Established in 2006, Global Tower has 8,067 ground
models differ in that the tower assets are actually on
based towers among a portfolio of over 23,000 sites.
CTILs balance sheet, while MBNL is a management
Of these macro towers, TowerXchange believes that
company with the assets retained by the MNOs. Meetup Europe 2017
Global Tower owns around 3,400 and leases around
CTIL is a passive infrastructure sharing play, while
2,390 from Turkcell, for which they only receive 4-5 April, London
MBNLs model extends to active infrastructure and
revenue from co-locations. In addition they manage
transmission sharing.
a portfolio of around 2,215 towers on behalf of
Turkcell, for which they just receive maintenance
Meetup Americas
fees.
When the merger between O2 and 3 was mooted,
it seemed that the realignment of partnerships 2017
Turkey is also home to one of the worlds largest
might create a window to monetise one or both 7-8 June, Florida
government-owned universal service networks, JV infracos, but in the aftermath of the EU vetoing
with over 1,100 RANshared base stations deployed
in rural areas. Turkeys three MNOs take it in turns
consolidation, its very much business as usual in
the UK tower market. Not that business as usual Meetup Africa 2017
to manage the rural network. is uneventful: the UK is home to one of the largest 3-4 October, Johannesburg
decommissioning programmes on the planet, while
United Kingdom
The UKs biggest tower news of Q3 is the sale of
CTIL and MBNL are also leading the rollout of 4G.
Around 2,500 new sites (towers and co-locations)
Meetup Asia 2017
Arcus-owned Shere Group to Cellnex for 393mn. are expected to be added to UK networks in 2016. 12-13 December, Singapore
With 540 sites in the UK, its not a sale which will The UKs broadcast tower operator Arqiva has been
re-write the tower landscape in the UK, however it through many changes of identity and ownership
is a toehold for Europes most acquisitive towerco (BBC, Crown Castle, National Grid to name a few), www.towerxchange.com
in a market which could yield some very significant and the 10,550 tower giant is rumoured to be
European tower deals since 2008
Cost per
Year Country Seller Buyer Tower count Deal value Deal structure
tower
2017 France Bouygues Cellnex 3000 854,000,000 284,666 SLB
2016 France Antin/FPS American Tower 2482 697,000,000 280,821 Company acquisition
2016 UK & Netherlands Shere Group Cellnex 1004 393,000,000 391,434 Company acquisition
2016 France Bouygues Telecom Cellnex 230 80,000,000 347,826 SLB
2016 France Bouygues Telecom Cellnex 270 67,000,000 248,148 SLB
2016 Netherlands Protelindo Cellnex 261 109,000,000 417,624 Company acquisition
2016 Germany Telefonica Telxius 2350 587,000,000 249,787 SLB
2016 Ukraine Lifecell UkrTower 811 47,820,000 58,964 SLB
2016 Spain Telefonica Telxius 11000 SLB
2015 Ireland Coillte Cignal 113 Portfolio acquisition
2015 Germany Telefonica Deutsche Telecom/ Omega Towers 7700 Asset Transfer
2015 Italy Tecnorad EI Towers 134 17,000,000 126,866 Portfolio acquisition
2015 Italy Wind (VimpelCom) Cellnex 7377 693,000,000 93,941 SLB with 10% equity
2015 Italy TowerCo Cellnex 212 94,600,000 446,226 Company acquisition
2014 Spain Telefonica/Yoigo Cellnex 4277 385,000,000 90,016 SLB
2012 France Bouygues Telecom FPS Towers 2166 185,000,000 100,400 SLB with 15% equity
2012 Germany KPN American Tower 2031 393,000,000 193,501 SLB
2012 Netherlands KPN Protelindo 261 75,000,000 287,356 SLB
2012 Netherlands KPN Shere Group 460 115,000,000 250,000 SLB
2012 Spain Telefonica Cellnex 500 45,000,000 90,000 SLB
2010 Netherlands KPN Open Tower Company 500 SLB
2008 Netherlands KPN Open Tower Company 101 SLB
Totals / average 41,758 3,286,420,000 147,082

European heatmap
Legend
TowerXchange research has not revealed any infracos or

towercos to date
Towercos or infracos active in the market. No recent
transactions have taken place and none rumoured to take
place soon
Towercos or infracos active in the market. No current
transactions taking place but an attempted tower sale has
taken place in the last 3 years or there are unconfirmed
rumours of a deal in this market.
Towercos or infracos active in the market. Rumours of deals
confirmed in the market.
Towercos or infracos active in the market. Deals of significant
size have taken place in the last 5 years.
Towercos or infracos active in the market. Deals have taken
place in the last year and more imminent deals rumoured
Note: For the purposes of our European coverage, Towerco describes an independent company which owns and operates passive infrastructure for commercial profit. Infraco incorporates MNO joint venture
organisations and carve outs which serve more than one entity or market their towers commercially
TowerXchanges whos who
2rn: Irish broadcast towerco with around 150
towers, some of which are used by telecom clients.
in European towers 3GIS: Operates a shared network between Telenor

and 3 (Hi3G) in Sweden.
TowerXchange presents an A-Z of 122 MNOs, towercos, investors and advisors who
Abertis Telecom: See Cellnex.
could be key stakeholders in the emerging European tower industry
Alinda Capital Partners: Acquired 100% equity
The European telecom tower market is most definitely opening up to the independent towerco business model. in Polish broadcast towerco Emitel in 2013. Emitel
Held in stasis for many years whilst Europes MNOs didnt need cash and towercos werent prepared to meet has diversified into telecom co-location. Alinda are
their valuations, tower carve outs and transactions are starting to gain momentum with new entities such as believed to have appetite for more investments in
Telxius, INWIT, Cellnex and CETIN rekindling interest in Europes existing telecom and broadcast towercos. the tower industry.
Keywords: TowerXchange Research, Whos Who, MNOs, Towercos, Investors, Europe, 2rn, 3GIS, Abertis Altice: French billionaire Patrick Drahls Altice
Telecom, Alinda Capital Partners, Altice, Alticom, America Movil, American Tower, Analysys Mason, Antenna
acquired French #2 MNO Numericable-SFR from
Hungaria, Antin, Arcus, Arqiva, Ashmore, Axion Azerconnect, Berkshire Partners, Blackstone, Bouygues Telecom,
Britannia Towers, Brookfield, BuyIn, Capital Group, CEE Equity Partners, Cellnex, esk Radiokomunikace, esk Vivendi in 2014. Altice also acquired Portugal
Telekomunikan Infrastruktura, CETIN, Cignal, Citi, Communication Infrastructure Partners, Crown Castle, CTIL, Telecom in June 2015, and has been similarly
Deutsche Funkturm, Digea, Digita, Digital Bridge, ECS, EE, EI Towers, Emitel, ESB Telecoms, ESN Group, ETB, acquisitive in the Americas. Altice is relatively
European Wireless Infrastructure Association, EWIA, EuroTower, EY, F2i, FMO, FPS Towers, Galata, Global Tower,
highly leveraged and has advocated efficiencies that
Goldman Sachs, Hardiman Telecommunications, Hibernian Towers, Highpoint, Hutchison, InfraVia, ING, IFC,
Intrepid Advisory Partners, Inwit, ITAS TIM, J.P. Morgan, KPN, KPR Consult, Levira, Link Development, Logycom have not to date explicitly extended to divesting
Group, Macquarie, MBNL, Media Broadcast, MegaFon, MOSAIC, Mott MacDonald, MTS, Net4Mobility, NetShare, towers, but it seems plausible that either monetising
NetWorkS!, Norkring, Obelisk, OIV, Open Tower Company, Orange, ORS, Portugal Telecom, PPF, Protelindo, network assets or divesting towers to reduce
Providence Equity, Quippo, Radicom, Rai Way, Rothschild, RTRS, Russian Towers, SBA Communications, Service
competitive concerns might be a plausible extension
Telecom, Shere Group, SUNAB, Swisscom, T-Mobile, TAP Advisors, TDF, Tele2, Tele2 Russia, Telefnica, Telemont,
Telenor, Telekom Austria, TeliaSonera, Teracom, Three, Threefold, TOWERCAST, Towercom, TT-Network, Turkcell, of their current strategies.
UFG Asset Management, UkrTower, Vertical, VICTUS Networks, Vimpelcom, Vodafone, Vodafone Procurement,
Wind, Wireless Infrastructure Group Alticom: Dutch towerco with 24 towers and 9 masts
primarily at high altitudes (by Dutch standards!)
primarily used by broadcast tenants but also by
Read this article to learn: telecom operators for microwave links. Services
< Whos who of 41 towercos and joint venture infrastructure sharing firms in Europe include provision of power and cooling.
< Maps showing the footprints of Europes leading MNOs and commentaries on their history and
appetite to share towers America Movil: See Telekom Austria.
< An introduction to some of the most credible current and prospective investors into European towers
< An introduction to the TMT advisory firms with experience of tower transactions American Tower: The worlds largest independent
commercial towerco, American Tower need
AMP Capital: Acquired Spanish towerco Axion a France-based, independent private equity
Altice from Antin Infrastructure Partners in 2016 and investment company. Were one of the last investors
investors in Irish towerco, Towercom. in the running to acquire a stake in Telefonicas
Telxius.
Analysys Mason: Marco Cordoni and his team
at Analysys Mason are among the go-to-guys for Arqiva: The largest independent towerco in the UK
tower market analysis and due diligence on a global with around 10,550 active towers with a tenancy
basis, and Europe is no exception. ratio around 2.5 and a portfolio of 16,500 in total,
of which less than 1,000 are pure broadcast sites.
Antenna Hungaria: Hungarys recently re- Acquired by a Macquarie-led consortium in 2005,
Nationalised broadcast towerco also sells into which was rollup up the NTL Broadcast and
co-locations to and provides installation and National Grid Wireless assets. Arqiva has over
maintenance services to telecom clients. 2,000 employees and has deep I&C and O&M
competencies and resources spanning broadcast
Antin Infrastructure Partners: One of the first and telecom. Arqiva is currently restructuring debt
movers in the European telecom tower asset class, which could result in a change of strategic direction
Antin owned, and recently sold both FPS Towers for the company.
(which built a portfolio of over 2,000 towers and
no introduction within this publication. In the rights to 15,000 rooftops in France), and (Axion Ashmore: Another investment firm with an
Germany, the company has owned and operated the leading broadcast towerco in Andaluca, Spain). appetite for telecom towers.
a network of 2,197 sites, the majority acquired Antin has appetite for further European tower
in 2012 for 393mn from KPN, since 2012. In Q3 investments. Axion: Operates 586 broadcast towers with some
2016 they announced a joint venture with Dutch telecom co-location in Spain, 70% of which are in
infrastructure investor PGGM and in Q4 2016, Arcus Infrastructure Partners: Arcus has been an Andaluca. Axion was sold by Antin Infrastructure
announced the acquisition of French towerco FPS active investor in European towers for over 11 years Partners to AMP Capital in August 2016.
Towers for 697mn. with the predecessor of what became UK and Dutch
towerco Shere Group, which was sold to Cellnex in Azerconnect: Infrasharing business in Azerbaijan.
In an exclusive interview with TowerXchange, an 2016 for 393mn. Arcus continues to manage their
ATC Europe spokesperson confirmed We welcome own and other consortium members investments Beltower: Global Towers Belarusian subsidiary
the opportunity to build on our partnership with in TDF, Frances largest towerco with 9,950 sites. with 828 towers under management.
PGGM and will continue to evaluate additional Arcus has an interest in further opportunities
investment opportunities in Europe and around in European towers which may or may not be Berkshire Partners: Berkshire backed Crown
the world, utilizing our proven investment addressed through their existing platforms, Castle during their successful foray into European
evaluation methodology and acting only if the depending on scale and geo. towers in the late nineties, and currently has
opportunities meet our risk-adjusted return hurdle active investments in Protelindo (largest towerco
requirements. Ardian: (formerly AXA Private Equity), is in Indonesia with a small footprint in the
Netherlands), Torres Unidas (Andean region of representing the industry with regards to policy interview, First we try to do a small acquisition
CALA) and Tower Development Corporation in the developments and regulatory intervention. to learn the market, gain our own experience
US and Puerto Rico. and meet customers. The second step is trying to
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners: Participated identify opportunities to gain size and scale in the
Blackstone: Another serial towerco investor in the consortium which acquired equity in TDF country. And the third step is consolidation in order
currently working with Phoenix Tower in 2014 and known to have an appetite for further to be able to provide nationwide coverage.
International in CALA with at least one other opportunities in European towers.
investment in the asset class imminent, none of esk Radiokomunikace: With 1,000 access points
which is in Europe leaving a vacancy in their stable! BuyIn: A 50/50 procurement joint venture between across the Czech Republic, esk Radiokomunikace
Deutsche Telekom and Orange with an annual provides structures and services to broadcast and
BNP Paribas: Investment bank active in both the budget of 28bn across network technology and telecom clients. Owned by Macquarie.
European and African markets; advised Cellnex on other telecom equipment categories.
their recent acquisitions of Bougues towers esk Telekomunikan Infrastruktura (CETIN):
Capital Group: Another investor keen on the When PPF acquired O2 Czech Republic from
Bouygues Telecom: Bouygues Telecom was telecom tower asset class, Capital Group has or had Telefnica in January 2014, they immediately
one of Europes first MNOs to sell towers to capital at work in Russian Towers as well as Eaton set about separating the retail assets from the
an independent towerco, selling 2,166 of their Towers in Africa. infrastructure, in the latter case creating CETIN
estimated 17,000 towers to Antins FPS Towers in which was briefly listed on the Prague stock
2012 for 185mn. In 2016 they sold 500 towers CEE Equity Partners: Investor exploring exchange prior to a squeeze out of minority
to Cellnex for a total of 500mn and in January opportunities in CEE towers. shareholders putting PPF as sole shareholders.
2017 they signed a deal with the aforementioned CETIN owns 20,000,000 km of metallic cable pairs,
governing the transfer of 1,800 existing points of Cellnex: Catalysts for the opening of the European 38,000km of fibre and 5,300 outdoor base stations
presence and 1,200 new build towers for a total of tower market, Cellnex (formerly Abertis Telecom) plus 750 micro base stations, providing 99.6%
354mn. have to date deployed over 1.5bn rolling up a population coverage. With O2 having set up a
portfolio of 19,753 telecom and broadcast towers network sharing agreement with T-Mobile prior to
Britannia Towers / Hibernian Towers/ Ulstercom: across Spain, Italy, the UK, Netherlands and the carve out, CETIN have taken over O2s role in
Privately owned towerco with 60 towers in the UK France. Flush with capital and confidence from managing the RAN sharing with T-Mobile
under the Britannia brand, 60 towers in Ireland their successful IPO, Cellnex has a multi-billion
under Hibernian and a further 20 towers in acquisition warchest. Although Cellnex dominates Cignal: Owns 115 towers developed for Hutch in
Northern Ireland under Ulstercom. the European deal table, it still has plenty of room Ireland, plus the ground leases under a just under
for growth in its existing markets: despite all this 300 other operator towers. Recently sold to InfraVia
Broadcast Networks Europe: Association of 18 recent activity, independent towercos own just prior to which it was known as Coillte.
broadcast companies operating in 21 European 13.7% of towers in Europe.
countries whose remit includes ensuring the Citi: One of the worlds leading tower transaction
economic competitiveness of Europes broadcast The idea is to replicate our international expansion advisory groups can be found within the TMT team
networks, optimising platform developments and model. Said CEO Tobias Martinez in a recent at Citi.
Coleago: Consulting firm global expertise in the in the tower industry as they previously invested towercos around the world. Digital Bridge recently
tower industry in Abertis (whose telecom arm is now known as appointed Phil Cooper as Managing Director
Cellnex), they also bid for a stake in Telefonicas EMEA, having previously kicked the tyres on the
Communication Infrastructure Partners: Telxius. opportunity to invest in TDF.
Owners of Open Tower Company, which acquired
601 towers from KPN in the Netherlands in two Delmec: The tower experts in consultation ECS: Polish tower builder in the process of
tranches in 2008 and 2010 for an undisclosed sum. and engineering, providing global solutions to leveraging capital injected by CEE Equity Partners
Current tower count: 684. operators, towercos and regulators on standards, to build and retain towers on their own balance
guidance and due diligence for portfolio sheet, creating Polands first mobile-focused
Conciel: Engineering and consultancy firm management. Engaging audit, assessment and towerco.
focussed on the telecoms and IT sector analysis for structural enhancement, capacity and
maintenance as individual activities or by way of EE: UK MNO joint venture between T-Mobile and
Crown Castle: Publicly listed U.S. towerco Crown managed services. Orange currently subject to a proposed acquisition
Castle had a profitable foray into European towers by BT which could destabilise the countrys JV
between 1997 and 2003, acquiring a 75mn revenue Deutsche Funkturm (DFMG): Towerco carved out infrastructure sharing companies in this case
tower business from the BBC and transforming of Deutsche Telekom in 2002. Their parent company particularly MBNL.
it into a 233mn revenue tower business with a remains their lead client representing around a
tenancy ratio of 2.9 by 2003, selling it to National third of DFMGs tenancies. Operates 27,000 sites, EI Towers: Broadcast towerco with a progressive
Grid Wireless for 1.1bn (just over US$2bn). of which around half are rooftops. Deutsche management team and an appetite to diversify
While Crown Castle has largely retrenched from Telekom has twice been rumored to be on the into telecoms a strategy they are well under way
their international strategy to deploy capital brink of divesting DFMG, but to date the assets are in executing having acquired 900 telecom towers
domestically diversifying into small cells and fibre, retained on their balance sheet. Deutsche Telekom from various small independent towercos in Italy,
TowerXchange would not rule out the U.S. giant is believed to be considering extending the reach managed by wholly owned subsidiary, Towertel.
returning to Europe. of its internal DFMG to manage towers outside Telecom now represents 8.9% of EI Towers
of Germany, including Austria, Poland and The revenues. EI Towers pursuit of an acquisition of
CTIL: Joint venture between Vodafone and O2 Netherlands. Italys other broadcast towerco Rai Way is back
(Telefnica) in the UK with around 12,000 sites. on the cards after some regulatory intervention.
Predecessor Cornerstone established the passive Digea: Greek broadcast towerco. The combination of the two entities could create
infrastructure sharing business, the new CTIL tremendous efficiencies given the estimated 60%
business now has around a 1bn of passive assets Digita: Broadcast towerco from Finland. overlap in their networks.
on its balance sheet whilst also leading the Beacon
active infrastructure sharing project, again between Digital Bridge: Serial tower entrepreneurs Mark Emitel: Polish broadcast towerco diversifying into
Vodafone and O2. Ganzi and Ben Jenkins are building another empire telecoms. Own 300-400 sites. Acquired by Alinda
having sold their last venture, GTP, to American Capital Partners.
CVC: An investment firm which manages Tower for US$4.8bn. Digital Bridge is an investment
investments globally over several sectors. Known vehicle through which stakes are invested in ESB Telecoms: Subsidiary of Irish National power
company ESB Networks developed to operate submitted a joint bid with Cellnex for the 45% stake
telecom sites. Most of their sites, which total around in Inwit (prior to the sale being pulled). Hutchison / 3 Group
400, are in substations.
FMO: Dutch development bank 51% government
ESN Group: Russian oil and gas, energy, owned, 49% by commercial banks and financial
engineering and infrastructure giant founded by institutions. Have invested in African towercos, not
Grigory Berezkin. Had been interested to bid for yet in Europe, where Eastern Europe is a better fit
VimpelComs Russian towers when the process than the West given their developing market remit.
started and stopped in the past interest in the
current process unknown. FPS Towers: French towerco, recently sold to
American Towers European JV, ATC Europe for
ETB: Serbian broadcast towerco. 697mn in December 2016, with the transaction
due to complete in Q1 2017. FPS was formed in
European Wireless Infrastructure Association 2012 by Antin Infrastructure Partners to acquire
(EWIA): Trade association for independent and manage just over 2,000 towers acquired from
towercos in Europe whose members included (at Bouygues Telecom. In addition to their portfolio of
time of press): American Tower Germany, Arqiva, 2482 towers, the company obtained the rights to
Axion, Cellnex, EI Towers, FPS Towers, Open Tower 15,000 rooftops in France.
Company, PCIA, Protelindo Towers BV, Towercom
and Wireless Infrastructure Group, whose CEO Scott Galata: Wind towerco acquired by Cellnex see Tower also owns UkrTower in the Ukraine, which
Coates chairs the EWIA. WIND Telecomunicazioni. owns 1,201 sites following the 2016 acquisition
of 811 towers from Lifecell (Turkcells Ukrainian
EuroTower: Aspiring towerco for Europe with GIC: A leading global investment firm which firm subsidiary), BelTower in Belarus, which owns
big vision and a willingness to evolve the business manages Singapores foreign reserves through 828 towers and 115 towers in Northern Cyprus.
model to meet the needs of European MNOs. Yet to investments in over 40 countries, including a stake In September 2016 Global Tower postponed their
close their first deal. in leading African towerco, IHS Towers. GIC clearly planned IPO at the eleventh hour.
have an interest in European towers as they bid to
EY: TMT strategy and corporate finance advisory acquire a stake in Telefonicas Telxius. Goldman Sachs: Experienced advisors on tower
team with extensive experience of advising on transactions and lenders to towercos.
tower transactions. Global Tower: Founded in 2006 as a subsidiary of
Turkcell, Global Tower is the biggest infrastructure Hardiman Telecommunications: A unique
F2i: One of the largest infrastructure funds in operator in Turkey with more than 23,000 points consultancy equally capable advising on
Europe, and owns a majority stake in Metroweb, of service, of which 8,067 are towers, the rest engineering and operational issues as they are
which operates a fibre network in Milan and being rooftops and IBS. Tenants include GSM and on commercial strategy and corporate finance.
Lombardy. F2i was rumored to have bid for Winds fixed-based operators, TV and radio broadcasters, Extensive experience advising on both the buy-side
towers ultimately acquired by Cellnex, and also public institutions and service providers. Global and sell-side in tower transactions.
Hibernian Towers: See Britannia Towers. half a billion dollars in debt and equity into the landmark European transactions.
eight towercos across emerging markets, with an
Highpoint: See Obelisk Group. objective to double that total investment by 2018. KKR: A global investment firm that manages
IFCs exposure in Europe to date is a US$20mn investments across multiple asset classes,
HighTel Towers: Italian towerco with 300 built to equity investment into Russian Towers. including private equity, energy, infrastructure,
suit towers in Italy, 300 acquired towers in Albania real estate, credit strategies and hedge funds.
and ambitions to grow in the Balkans. Intrepid Advisory Partners: Advisory firm Theyve been linked to several opportunities in
established by Daniel Lee, the Rainmaker of the Europe in the past and have just been successful
Hutchison: MNO typically operating under the African tower industry Dan advised on 11 of the in acquiring a 40% stake in Telefonicas Telxius for
brand 3. Active in Europe in Italy, the UK, Sweden, first 13 deals to close in Africa. 1.3bn.
Denmark, Austria and Ireland. Hutchison has
sold four tranches of towers in Indonesia to INWIT (Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane S.p.A.): Konsing Group: Serbian managed service
Protelindo and STP, but has not yet completed Telecom Italia carved out INWIT as an independent provider active in multiple European markets, also
any divestments in Europe, although they have towerco and listed 40% of the equity in the own and operate 74 towers in their home country.
participated in infrastructure sharing JVs such company in a successful IPO on the Milan stock
as MOSAIC in Ireland and MBNL in the UK. The exchange, raising 875.3mn. Telecom Italia has KPN: Leading telecom and IT service provider in
merger of Vimpelcoms Wind and Hutchisons 3 since postponed a process to sell a further 45% of The Netherlands. Sold a total of 1,322 Dutch towers
Italia may result in the sale of around 5,000 towers the equity in the company to a third party, citing in four tranches between 2008 and 2012 to Open
in Italy, while in the UK, Threes takeover of O2 has a need to build value in the portfolio in order to Tower Company, Shere Group and Protelindo. Sold
been blocked by the European Commission amidst realise the true potential of the company. a further 2,031 towers in Germany to American
concerns around competition and the impact on Tower in 2012 before the sale of their German
network sharing agreements in the country. INWIT operates 11,519 towers in Italy, of which subsidiary, E-Plus, to Telefnica in October 2014.
7,400 are in suburban or rural areas, commanding
IHS Markit: Research firm with a global remit. a 1577 lease rate, and 4,100 in urban areas, with KPR Consult: Renowned tower doctors go-
a 2297 lease rate. At the time of the IPO, INWITs to guys for structural / technical due diligence,
InfraVia Capital Partners: Acquired Coilltes tenancy ratio was 1.55, with Telecom Italia as their improvement capex planning, decommissioning
300 sites in August 2015 for an undisclosed sum, anchor tenant, Vodafone as their primary second and just about anything to do with tower design
renaming the company Cignal. tenant and around 1,500 Wind tenancies. and maintenance. KPR also manage a significant
proportion of the towers in Denmark through co-
ING Commercial Banking: Leading Dutch bank ITAS TIM: Family owned towerco which operates location management agreements.
with considerable experience of providing debt 420 towers in France with a combination of
finance to the tower industry. broadcast, radio, M2M, WiMAX and MNO tenants. Levira: Estonian broadcast towerco, data centre,
Acquired by TDF in 2016. network, cloud and media service provider. 51%
International Finance Corporation (IFC): The owned by the government, 49% by TDF. Owns 22
IFC is a member of the World Bank Group, the J.P. Morgan: Leading TMT advisory team with transmitter towers across Estonia and provides co-
worlds leading DFI. The IFC has invested around extensive experience in towers, including some of location services to MNOs.
(Hutchison) in the UK with around 18,000 sites, Netgrid Telecom: Joint venture between Orange
although the assets remain on its shareholders and Vodafone in Romania, formerly known as
MTS coverage
balance sheets. Status of the JV remains unclear if Ovidiu.
the O2-Three and BT-EE mergers are approved.
Net4Mobility: Swedish joint venture infrastructure
Media Broadcast: Broadcast towerco operating sharing firm founded in 2009 by Telenor and Tele2.
over 300 transmitters across Germany. Media
Broadcast was separated from TDF in April 2015. NetShare: Former Vodafone-Three Ireland JV from
which Three were compelled to exit under the
MegaFon: Number two MNO in Russia, carved out terms of their merger with O2. NetShare continues
14,000 towers into captive towerco, First Tower to administer the Vodafone network.
Company in November 2015. More recently Tavrin
provided further hints as to the potential means NetWorkS! 50-50 Polish joint venture
and timelines for monetising MegaFons towerco: infrastructure sharing firm responsible for the
We are not going to put our tower company on the management of T-Mobile and Oranges networks.
bourse. It seems that a partial or complete sale to a When launched in 2011, and prior to consolidation,
strategic investor may be the more likely outcome: NetWorkS! managed 10,000 base stations.
We believe that if we thoroughly prepare, well
Link Development: Operates over 300 towers, manage to pocket a high-quality investor and win a New Street Research: Independent research
primarily in Northwest Russia, supplemented by a high-quality future operating history. firm specialising in telecommunications equity
growing fleet of smart poles. and debt research, developing differentiated
Morgan Stanley: Investment bank and equities investment insights that impact institutional
Logycom Group: The first independent towerco in research analyst leading coverage on INWIT and investors, company executives, and government
Kazakhstan, with a contract for their first 100 BTS Cellnex; also lead the Cellnex IPO. policy-makers. Headed by Spencer Kurn, New
towers. Street Research will be hosting the investors club
MOSAIC: Vehicle for the infrastructure sharing matchmaking event at the 2017 TowerXchange
Macquarie Group: Serial towerco investors, with partnership between Three and Eircom in Ireland. Meetup Europe.
capital at work in Europe within Arqiva and Russian Assets remain on the balance sheets of the MNOs.
Towers, and farther afield with Axicom (formerly Norkring: Wholly owned subsidiary of Telenor
Crown Castle Australia), Mexico Tower Partners Mott MacDonald: Digital Infrastructure team which owns both the Norweigian and Belgian
and Viom Networks (soon to be part of ATC India). has extensive experience of advising on tower broadcast towercos. Norkring has 2,750
Macquarie also has an excellent TMT advisory transactions and investments. transmission stations across Norway, with space
practice with experience of advising on tower leased to broadcasters, MNOs, broadband and
transactions. MTS: Unlike their competitors, Russian market public service providers. Norkring Belgie is 25%
leading MNO MTS has yet to provide any hints of owned by PMV, itself owned by the Flemish
MBNL: Joint venture between EE and Three potential appetite to monetise their towers. government.
infrastructure sharing deals in Spain, Poland and loyal management team, Protelindo is the largest
Orange coverage Romania, and has partnered with Three to create towerco in Indonesia where they own over 11,500
MBNL in the UK. While Orange has partnered with towers. Protelindo acquired 261 towers from KPN in
independent towercos in Africa, agreeing manage the Netherlands in 2012 for 75mn and was in turn
with license to lease deals with IHS in Cameroon acquired by Cellnex in 2016 for 109mn.
and Cote dIvoire and selling towers to Eaton
Towers in Uganda and Egypt, the MNO has not yet Providence Equity: Communications and media
extended their passive infrastructure monetisation investment specialists with capital at work in Indus
strategy to Europe. That may change in 2017, with Towers (India), Grupo Torresur (Brazil) and KIN
rumors of Orange being interested to sell their (Indonesia). Expect Providence to have considerable
towers in Spain and Poland. interest in European towers.
ORS: Austrian broadcast towerco carved out of Quippo International: The ownership team
national broadcaster ORF in 2005. ORF still owns behind Viom Networks in India, now seeking
60%, with Medicur Sendeanlagen, part of Raiffeisen new international opportunities following their
Orange branded as Orange across Europe, and as EE
group, owning the balance. ORSs 450 transmitter successful exit and sale to American Tower.
(company owned 50% with T-Mobile) in the UK sites are offered for co-location by MNOs. Believed to have an appetite for opportunities in
Russia, among other markets.
Obelisk Group: Obelisk Group is a diversified PA Consulting: Consulting, technology and
energy and telecoms EPC contractor which also innovation firm, advising operators, infrastructure Radicom: Broadcast towerco from Romania.
owns Highpoint, a towerco which markets and owners and investors on strategic decisions. Have
manages more than 150 sites in Ireland. extensive experience in tower transactions; acting Rai Way: Listed Italian broadcast towerco with
as advisors to both buy and sell-side. 2,300 towers delivering 99% coverage. Manages
OIV: Croatian broadcast towerco which offers co- both active and passive infrastructure for their
location to MNOs from 218 sites. Portugal Telecom: Largest telecom service broadcast clients. Since Q4 2014 Rai Way have
provider in Portugal. Acquired by Altice for 7.4bn dedicated resources to leasing up their existing
Open Tower Company: See Communication in June 2015. Rumors circulated in 2014 and again towers, and report having MNO tenants on ~700
Infrastructure Partners. in 2015 that Portugal Telecom might be interested in of their sites, as well as towercos usual non-
selling 2-3,000 towers, but no deal crystalised. traditional MNO tenants: emergency services and
Orange: (Orange branded as Orange across fixed wireless access operators.
Europe, and as EE (company owned 50% with PPF: Investment fund founded by the richest man
T-Mobile) in the UK). One of Europes largest MNOs in the Czech Republic Petr Kellner. PPF acquired O2 Rai Way has been the subject of much consolidation
with a footprint across France, Spain, Belgium, Czech Republic and spun off its infrastructure as speculation. EI Towers initial interest in acquiring
Luxembourg, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Moldova, CETIN. Rai Way earlier in 2015 was met with a distinctly
Romania, Ireland and the UK, where they are a negative response by government stakeholders, but
50% shareholder in EE. Orange has agreed active Protelindo: Brainchild of Michael Gearon and his talks have reportedly re-opened with all parties
European focused tower conference in October 2015
T Mobile coverage attracting over 50 investors and 10 EMEA centric Tele2
tower companies. TowerXchange were privileged to
serve as the keynote speaker at that event.
RTRS: State-owned Russian television and

broadcasting network with some MNO tenants on
their towers, but they dont seem to be proactively
promoting co-location.
Russian Towers: Leading independent towerco

in Russia with around 1,800 towers. Russian
Towers have a unique partnership with the
Russian railway enabling them to build along
the railway infrastructure, while more recently
T-Mobile branded as T-Mobile in Austria, Croatia, Czech they have deployed a number of multi-tenant sister company to Altman Vilandrie, covering the
Republic, Hungary, Montenegro, Netherlands and Poland, light poles, electricity poles and develop other European market. Wide reaching expertise in the
branded as Telekom in Albania, Germany, Macedonia and
city infrastructure. Auspicious roster of backers TMT space.
Slovakia and as EE (company owned 50% with Orange) in
the UK includes UFG, EBRD, IFC, Macquarie, ADM Capital
and Sumitomo Corporation. Understood to be close SUNAB: Active infrastructure sharing joint venture
hoping for a speedy conclusion.
to acquiring VimpelComs 14,000 towers in Russia. between Tele2 and TeliaSonera in Sweden.
Russian Towers could extend their footprint into the
Raymond James: Equities research analyst with
CIS if the right opportunity presents itself. Sunrise: Number two operator in the Swiss market,
longstanding experience in the global tower
bringing a large percentage of their 2000 strong
industry
SBA Communications: Publicly listed US towerco tower portfolio to market, marking the countrys
with over 25,000 towers in North and South first potential tower deal.
Rothschild: Investment and advisory firm with a
America. No presence in Europe. Yet.
strong pedigree in European towers.
Swisscom: Swiss broadcast towerco.
Service Telecom: Towerco with over 120 towers
Royal Bank of Canada: RBC are one of the few
and microsites in Moscow. T-Mobile: Leading European MNO which has
equity research practices monitoring the tower
been involved in network sharing JVs in Poland,
industry outside North America, and they do a
Shere Group: IIndependent towerco with 860 the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and the UK
great job. Jonathan Dann heads the RBC Telecom
towers across the UK and the Netherlands, acquired (through their 50% stake in EE). T-Mobile has not
and Towers equity research practice. In additional
by Cellnex in 2016 for 393mn. yet sold any towers in Europe but has done in the
to extensive coverage of the European Tower
US, where they also operate their own towerco
landscape the RBC team organised the first
Solon Consultants: Strategic consultants and T-Mobile Towers.
came from telecom, 30.3% from TV and 18.3% from
Telefonica coverage radio broadcast. Telekom Austria
Tele2: Tele2 has undertaken active infrastructure
Telefonica
sharing with Telenor in Sweden and passive
infrastructure sharing with T-Mobile in The
Netherlands, but has not to date sold any towers.
Tele2 exited the Russian operator of the same name
in 2013, the latest in a series of divestments.
Tele2 Russia: Joint venture between Rostelcom

(45%), VTB Group and a consortium of investors,
which owns 55%. Tele2 Russia is driving network
investments in Russia as it expands from a regional
to a nationwide player. Tele2 Russia is building
around 1,000 towers per year itself and leveraging
co-location to accelerate time to market. Tele2s
Telefonica branded as O2 in UK, Ireland, Germany, network investments are driving Russian towerco
SlovakiaandCzech Republicand as Movistar in Spain. Majority expansion, for example Russian Towers derives 37.6% of its revenue from Tele2 Russia compared to
stakes in O2 Czech Republic and Slovakia sold to PPF which
currently still trades under the O2 brand. 19% from Vimpelcom, 17.7% from MTS and 13.1%
Telenor coverage from Megafon.
TAP Advisors: Boutique M&A and investment
advisory firm with long history of advising on tower Tele2 Russias low cost business model has made
deals, including advising INWIT on their IPO. some early market share inroads and forced
Russias three incumbent operators to increase their
TDF (Tldiffusion de France): Leading French own network capex. Introduced services in Moscow
towerco with 9,950 sites and over 2,000 employees. and Moscow Oblast in October 2015 having built a
Refinanced in March 2015 with Brookfield, APG, formidable network of 5,000 3G and 2,000 LTE base
PSP, Arcus Infrastructure and Credit Agricole stations.
becoming shareholders. In recent years TDF has
refocused on their domestic French market and Tele2 are believed to be currently looking for a
has less appetite for international opportunities, buyer for their 8,000 towers.
selling broadcast towercos Axion (Spain), Alticom
(Netherlands), Digita (Finland), Antenna Hungaria Telecentras: Lithuanian TV broadcast operator
(Hungary) and separating Media Broadcast Telenor branded as Telenor in Denmark, Hungary, Montenegro, with around 30 towers available to the telecoms
Serbia, Sweden and Norway and as Globul in Bulgaria
(Germany). In 2014-15 41.2% of TDFs revenues market.
385mn. Telefnicas acquisition of E-Plus from TeliaSonera has engaged in active infrastructure
Teliasonera coverage KPN in Germany precipitated the transfer of 7,700 sharing partnerships in Denmark, with Telenor,
sites mostly rooftops to Deutsche Telekom and and in Finland, with DNA. TeliaSoneras proposed
ultimately to Deutsche Funkturm. merger with Telenor in Denmark, which may
have shaken loose some towers, has been called
Telefnica has also sold a total of over 9,000 towers off. However the acquisition of Tele2 Norway
in Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Colombia, raising a total has been closed, with network integration
of over US$1.5bn. ongoing anticipate some towers being sold or
decommissioned as a result.
Telemont: Leading Russian tower I&C and O&M
subcontractor. TeliaSonera recently appointed UBS to explore
their potential exit from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan,
Telenor: Multinational Norwegian owned MNO Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Nepal, Georgia and Moldova,
Teliasonera branded as Telia and Callme in Denmark, EMT Telenor has shared infrastructure all over its enabling the group to sharpen its focus on the rest
and Diil in Estonia, Sonera and TeleFinland in Finland, Geocell
in Georgia, Kcell and Activ in Kazakhstan, LMT and Amigo in
footprint, but has tended to partner with towercos of Europe and the Nordics.
Latvia, Omnitel and Ezys in Lithuania, Moldcell in Moldova, in greenfield launches, such as the launch of Uninor
Netcom, Chess, OneCall and MyCall in Norway, Yoigo in Spain, (now Telenor India) and the launch of Telenor Telxius: Telefnicas global subsidiary formed
Telia and Halebop in Sweden, Tcell in Tajikistan and Ucell in
Uzbekistan Myanmar. Within established markets, Telenor has in early 2016 to bring together a selection of the
seemingly preferred to retain towers and instead groups infrastructure assets. The unit incorporates
Telefnica: Spanish owned multinational MNO form active infrastructure sharing partnerships 11,000 Spanish towers (thought to comprise of
Telefnica has made the headlines by carving out its such as with TeliaSonera in Denmark and with rooftop and ground based towers) and 2,350
11,500 Spanish towers into a new entity - Wireless Tele2 and Hutchison in Sweden. German ground based towers (plus 2,832 towers in
Towers, and are following a dual strategy approach Brazil, Peru and Chile and 31,000km of fibre optic
to either list or sell the newly created infrastructure Telekom Austria: America Movil owns a 59.7% cable). Telxius reported pro forma FY15 revenues
business. stake in 4bn MNO Telekom Austria, which has a of 600mn, with 60% attributed to the submarine
footprint across Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, cabling components of their business and 40% to
Following rumours that a potential 60,000 Macedonia, Bulgaria and Belarus. TowerXchange towers, of which 85% came from their European
Telefnica assets could be for sale, it is widely have picked up the first hints that Telekom Austria towers Calculating the average revenue per tower
thought that they will follow a similar approach in might be receptive to some form of infrastructure we arrive at the figure of just under 17k per site
Germany where it is estimated they have a further outsourcing deal, possibly involving passive and in line with the revenues reported by Cellnex. After
10-12,000 towers remaining. active equipment. an abortive IPO attempt in September 2016, Telxius
sold a 40% stake to KKR for 1.3bn in February
Telefnica has already sold 500 towers in Spain TeliaSonera: TeliaSonera has completed one 2017.
to Abertis (now Cellnex) in 2012 before a further tower transaction to date in Europe their Spain
bundle of 4,277 Telefnica and Yoigo towers subsidiary Yoigo contributed some of the 4,277 Teracom: Broadcast towerco for Denmark and
was sold to the same company in 2014, raising Telefnica and Yoigo towers sold to Cellnex in 2014. Sweden.
towerCast: French broadcast towerco owned by completed a number of build to suit programmes
Vimpelcom coverage NRJ Group. Also sells co-location to telecom clients. for multiple MNOs in rural areas.
Towercom: Towerco in the Republic of Ireland VICTUS Networks: Network sharing joint venture,
carved out and sold by Eircom in 2007. Operates governing 7000 towers, created in 2014 with 50-50
over 400 towers. Sold to the Irish Infrastructure participation between Vodafone Greece and Wind
Fund in 2013. Hellas. Uses a partial MORAN business model.
TT-Network: Danish infrastructure sharing joint (VimpelCom branded as Beeline in Russia,

venture with around 2,500 towers established in Armenia, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan,
2012 by TeliaSonera and Telenor. Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Wind in Italy and
Kyivstar in Ukraine).
Turkcell: Leading MNO in Turkey. Carved out and
retained their own towerco, Global Tower, which Vimpelcom: Kick started the current phase of
they had planned to IPO before cancelling the European tower sales with the sale and leaseback
process at the eleventh hour. In March 2016, their of 7,377 towers from their Italian opco Wind
Vimpelcom branded as Beeline in Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan,
Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan andUzbekistan, Wind in Italy and Ukrainian subsidiary, Lifecell, sold 811 towers to to Cellnex for 693mn in 2015. VimpelCom has
Kyivstar in Ukraine sister company UkrTower (also wholly owned by subsequently commenced processes to sell 10,400
Turkcell) in a sale and leaseback transaction for towers (and up to 19,000 rooftop sites) in Russia
Three Italy: The merger of Vimpelcoms Wind and US$52mn. with a deal expected to be announced imminently,
Hutchisons 3 Italia may result in the sale of around and processes also under way in Bangladesh and
5,000 towers in Italy. UFG Asset Management: Russian focused Pakistan. VimpelCom are also aiming to divest
alternative investment group is one of the founding thousands of towers in Armenia, Kazakhstan,
Three UK and Ireland Ireland: Threes merger shareholders of Russian Towers. Ukraine and Georgia.
with Telefnicas O2 in Ireland precipitated Three
exiting the Netshare joint venture with Vodafone UkrTower: UkrTower, Ukrainian towerco wholly Vodafone: Vodafone is an advocate of
but after the ECs block of Threes takeover of O2 owned by the Turkcell group. Acquired 811 towers infrastructure sharing and has entered into passive
in the UK, the operators JV with Vodafone in the from sister company Lifecell for US$52mn in infrastructure sharing JVs in the UK (CTIL) and
country has remained. February 2016, taking their tower count to 1181. Ireland (NetShare), as well as active infrastructure
sharing deals in Greece, Romania, Spain and again
Threefold: Leading Irish tower I&C and O&M Vertical: Russian towerco, formed in 2013, in the UK.
firm which led the buyout of Eircoms mast experienced large growth in 2015, acquiring
infrastructure in 2007, and the subsequent and refurbishing over 500 sites, leaving them Apart from Vodafone Indias participation in
establishment of Towercom. Threefold now with a portfolio of 1600 sites. Wholly owned by Indus Towers in India, a sale and leaseback deal
provides tower strategy advice to stakeholders the company founder, the company has a heavy in Tanzania through subsidiary Vodacom, and
across Europe and beyond. focus on the Moscow region and has in addition a manage with license to lease deal in Ghana,
Europes most entrepreneurial middle-market
Vodafone coverage towercos, WIG became a bona fide towerco in 2007.
Through a combination of organic growth and small
to mid-sized acquisitions, WIG has grown a portfolio
of over 2,000 active sites. The company and their
investors Wood Creek Capital Management remain
acquisitive.
Meetup
If we get to half the level of outsourcing as the US Europe 2017
market there would be an additional 100,000 towers
owned by towercos, said WIG CEO Scott Coates.
4-5 April, Business Design
The opportunity also extends beyond towers WIG
for example has an active DAS business and we are Centre, London
looking at outdoor small cell networks for cities
in the UK. Whether its towers or small cells, the
wholesale sector has a major role to play in the next
chapter of European wireless networks.
Vodafone has not entered into deep partnerships Wireless Towers: Formed in January 2016,
with towercos. Wireless Towers in Telefonicas newly created
Spanish infrastructure business which manages the
Vodafone Procurement Company (VPC): Vodafone companys 11,500 towers in the country. Telefonica
founded VPC in 2008 to leverage scale and a leaner are looking at a potential sale or listing of the
procurement and SCM model. VPC administers a business, employing a dual strategy approach, in
total procurement budget in excess of 20bn per order to reduce its debt burden
annum, and provides procurement services to third
parties, including independent towercos. Who have we missed?
Wind Telecomunicazioni: VimpelComs Italian opco Advance apologies: were bound to have missed
whose towerco Galata was sold to Cellnex in 2015, one or two key stakeholders in European towers
with Wind retaining a 15% equity stake, as well as If you feel your company should be profiled
a small proportion of the towers. Wind is currently in the TowerXchange whos who in European A unique networking opportunity with 200 leaders of the
engaged in a merger with Hutchisons 3 Italia, which towers, please email Frances Rose, Head of European telecom and broadcast tower industry
could shake loose more towers. TowerXchange Europe, at:
frose@towerxchange.com. www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe
Wireless Infrastructure Group (WIG): One of
Raise your company profile during MNO and towerco core
budget setting time
Sponsorship and exhibition opportunities
Held annually in Q2, the TowerXchange Meetup Europe is where the regions towercos and operators assess products and services as they set their
budgets for the following year.
Companies looking to access these budgets are invited to participate in a range of sponsorship and exhibition opportunities both on site and in the run
up to the event.
Key products and services buyers are looking to assess include:
< Access control < Inverters, rectifiers, alternators < Site management systems
< Advisory services < Legal services < Solar generation
< Air conditioning < Microcells, small cells and DAS < Static assets: shelters, brackets, enclosures,
< Batteries < Operations & Maintenance fencing
< Diesel Gensets < Powercubes < Tower design and manufacture
< Fibre, microwave and satellite backhaul < Remote monitoring systems < Tower strengthening
< Fuel cells < Security and CCTV < Wind power
Meetup Europe Floorplan
RSVD 202 RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD 210 RSVD RSVD
201 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 211 212
Exit
RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD

301 302 101 102
RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD

303 304 103 104
Access to main Disabled

Meetup room access
Entrance, exit &

washrooms
TowerXchange Meetup sponsorship options 2017 Tower Xchange
< TowerXchange Meetup Europe, April 4-5, 2017 < TowerXchange Meetup Americas, June 7-8, 2017
By invitation only: restricted to Director, VP and C-level
< TowerXchange Meetup Africa, October 3-4, 2017 < TowerXchange Meetup Asia, 12-13 December, 2017 attendees. Maximum of 2 delegate passes per company
except for MNOs, towercos and sponsors
Bronze Silver Gold Platinum Diamond
Benefits Delegate pass Exhibitor
Sponsor Sponsor Sponsor Sponsor Sponsor
Access to TowerXchange Meetup 1 pass 1 pass 1 pass 2 passes 3 passes 4 passes 5 passes
Daytime Catering
TowerXchange Roundtable interactions
Video on TowerXchange TV
10ft x 10ft Turnkey booth
Logo on backdrop, signage, fliers & invites for TowerXchange Meetup
Your choice of bronze sponsorship benefit
Your choice of silver sponsorship quality benefit
Your choice of gold sponsorship premium benefit
Your choice of platinum business-class benefit
Your choice of diamond first-class benefit
Roundtable host Panel moderator Technology Evaluation working groups
There is limited availability for roundtable hosts, panel moderators and inclusion on the Technology evaluation working groups please contact amayhew@towerxchange.com to learn more
* Discounted rate available to Towercos, Government and Regulator representatives, 100% discount for qualifying Director - C-level execs from Operators
Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum Sponsorship Benefit Options - Bespoke packages
Industry breakdown of a comparable tower industry Meetup
can be created on request
Bronze Sponsorship Sponsorship of breakfast (Open) day two

Stationary sponsor (provided by client) USB sponsor (provided by client) - SOLD
9% Independent towerco
Gift drop (provided by client) Lanyards (provided by client) 15%
Drinks coaster sponsor (provided by client) MNOs
Business card wallet (provided by client) Investor
Platinum Sponsor 5%
Silver Sponsorship Sponsorship of Lunch Day one Managed services, tower & accessory supply
Totes Bags (provided by client) Sponsorship of Lunch Day two 8% RMS and ILM
Sponsorship of coffee break day two pm Sponsorship of icebreaker drinks
Sponsorship of coffee break day two am 44% 3% Small cells and DAS
Champagne Roundtable session sponsor
Sponsorship of coffee break day one am 5% Advisory firm: investment strategy legal
Sponsorship of coffee break day one pm 5%
Diamond Sponsor Energy equipment and services
Sponsorship of Drinks Reception 5%
Gold Sponsorship Other
Sponsorship of breakfast (Open) day one Sponsorship of Networking Dinner
Meetup Europe Sponsors
GOLD SPONSOR:
FPS Towers
FPS Towers, the only telecom tower pure player in France,

owns a high-quality portfolio of 2,400 towers and rents/
manages almost 20,000 rooftops.
In the three years since its launch, FPS Towers has

demonstrated consistent organic and external growth:
CAGR > 35% and a high level EBITDA margin from new
long-term hosting agreements, boosting tenancy ratio and
real estate acquisitions.
FPS Towers owes its strong yet controlled growth to a

management team with deep experience in the telecom
industry and a workforce that is fully invested in its
corporate motto: Reaching your goals. FPS Towers
delivers secured and valued sites to wireless carriers or
any network operator who wants to use them.
To meet the challenges of the extraordinary demand

for bandwidth growth from the carriers driven by the
explosion of users data consumption on mobile devices,
FPS Towers is continuing its double digit growth in two
ways: developing existing sites and by acquiring new sites
(such as towers, rooftops and water towers).
www.fpstowers.fr
Our sponsors & exhibitors
SILVER SPONSOR: SILVER SPONSOR: SILVER SPONSOR:
Tarantula
Tarantula is a proven world leader in telecom site

Siterra, An Accruent Product
Acsys Technologies Ltd management software and the trusted partner of
leading telecom infrastructure operators in 20 countries.
Siterra, an Accruent Product, addresses the software
Acsys is a specialized towerco security and field Through its specialised site management platform,
needs of tower companies to sell co-locations, upgrade
Tarantula is a fundamental pillar of support behind the
service management software provider. Recognizing capacity, build-to-suit, maintain accurate asset registers,
management of more than 350,000 mobile towers and
the telecom industrys relentless drive to efficiency, manage maintenance, and collaborate with vendors
assets worth US$25 billion around the world.
we design solutions to accelerate you forward. Our operationally as well as consolidate and integrate tower-
software and mobile applications in combination related software technically. Sixteen of the towercos and Red Cube is the industry standard for end-to-end tower
with military-grade access control hardware form a 4 infracos that TowerXchange tracks are current Siterra lifecycle management. It is built around 30+ real-world,
tiered tool for: Flexibility, Efficiency, Productivity, and customers, spanning 18 countries and five continents. best practice towerco processes that have been brought
Security. The first version of the Siterra site management platform to life through persona-based workflows, linking
was released in 2001. 100,000 users later, Siterra has together towerco data such as assets, leases, billing,
Our solutions are designed to improve your site become the industry standard, must-have operating and financials into one central business model. This
operations through the near elimination of theft, software for tower companies today. Accruent works functionality is available straight out of the box, allowing
reduced inefficiencies, vendor and ticket auditing, and with its leading towerco customers to jointly develop companies to quickly deploy an optimised towerco
real-time remote control of field technicians. In the age new features that are deployed regularly through the
business model.
of Big Data, Acsys gives you the intel you need to offer SaaS platform to constantly improve customer value.
Accruent has developed global process standards with www.tarantula.net
your tenants a better experience while reducing your
local flexibility to pair with best-in-class software SILVER SPONSOR:
OPEX.
functionality.
Our expert team of mechatronic security, software
Accruents telecommunications division serves some
development, and telecom professionals represent of the worlds largest mobile network operators and
14 nationalities and have combined their expertise service providers in addition to tower companies, Delmec
to deploy the Acsys solutions in nearly 50 countries helping link employees from different organizations in
Delmec has been a primary player in the
around the globe. Acsys is ISO 9001 certified and a the industry to collaborate to projects. Accruent is the
Telecommunications Industry for over thirty years. It
preferred supplier of many of the biggest names in the largest independent provider of commercial property
supplies not only infrastructure to the industry but also
telco industry. management software, serving the telecom, retail,
solutions to the challenges facing the owners of portfolios
education, healthcare, and corporate markets with over
Acsys solutions built to improve your bottom line. of Telecoms Infrastructure. Headquartered in Ireland, with
5,400 customers in 120 countries.
subsidiaries across Europe and Africa, Delmec also provides
www.acsys.com www.accruent.com services in the Middle East, Asia and Americas.
Our sponsors
Its depth of experience comes from providing structural projects and/or operational optimization processes, in a telecoms infrastructure transactions. We have significant
and network solutions; site building and commissioning; cost effective way. industry experience, advising on telecoms transactions
steelworks design and supply; site inspection, maintenance in numerous countries, including across Africa and the
and enhancement; fibre networks; advisory and consultation www.medipower.com/en/index.php Middle East. Our telecommunications advice includes
services. This expertise enables Delmec to provide turnkey acquisitions and disposals, debt and equity financing,
solutions from design concept to live on air. BRONZE SPONSOR:
infrastructure development, operational arrangements,
regulatory matters and dispute resolution.
It has supplied these services to major names in the industry
We also have significant experience in the negotiation and
in 40 countries, many of whom have continually sought the EnerSys
expert knowledge and technology of Delmec. The companys drafting of sale and purchase, debt and equity financing,
values lead it to provide its clients with the best customer EnerSys is the global leader in stored energy solutions master lease, build-to-suit, site management and service
service, high efficiency, value and quality, in both its services for industrial applications. We complement our extensive level arrangements; and have played a prominent role in
and supplies, and for which many of its clients have stated line of motive power, reserve power and specialty complex fibre transactions.
that Delmec are; The best in the world at what they do products with a full range of integrated services and
www.velaw.com
systems. With sales and service locations throughout the
www.delmec.ie BRONZE SPONSOR:
world. Headquartered in the United States, with regional
BRONZE SPONSOR: headquarters in Europe and Asia, EnerSys employs over
nine thousand people and operates 32 manufacturing and
MediPower assembly facilities world-wide. This vast infrastructure Bladon Jets
and over 100 years of battery experience positions EnerSys
Bladon Jets breakthrough technologies enable the
Since 2003, MediPower keeps the leading position as ESCO at the forefront of both manufacturing capabilities and
production of micro gas turbine engines which are more
for the Italian telecom sector, providing energy to off-grid new product development.
efficient, less polluting and lower cost than traditional
BTS for all the local MNOs (Vodafone, Wind, TIM, H3G). reciprocating power units. Introducing the worlds first
www.enersys.com
12kW microturbine genset designed specifically for the
Operating in FULL OPEX model within an extremely
BRONZE SPONSOR: telecom tower power market delivering reduced fuel and
challenging logistic and environmental scenario, the
maintenance costs, durability, and ultra-quiet operation
company holds a market share greater than 80%.
for use in urban environments. Bladons revolutionary
Vinson & Elkins RLLP microturbine, heat exchanger and air bearing technologies
MediPower experience is replicable globally, relying on
harness the power of a miniature jet engine to provide a
the best-in-class technology provided by Ausonia: AC Vinson & Elkins is one of the oldest and largest compact and ultra-reliable alternative to the traditional
& DC gensets, hybrid solutions, remote management and international law firms, with approximately 700 lawyers diesel generator. Use Bladons Micro Turbine Genset as
renewable sources integration. located in 16 offices around the world. a primary power source, hybrid mode with batteries or
renewable energy sources, or as backup power to the grid.
For these reasons, MediPower represents the ideal energy Our global telecommunications team has extensive
partner to globally approach network implementation experience advising on international telecoms and www.bladonjets.com
Our sponsors and exhibitors
BRONZE SPONSOR: Exhibitor:
on Intelsat to provide ubiquitous broadband connectivity,
multi-format video broadcasting, secure satellite
communications and seamless mobility services. The Abloy
Cellnex Telecom
end result is an entirely new world, one that allows us
ABLOYis one of the leading manufacturers of locks,
to envision the impossible, connect without boundaries
Cellnex is Europes leading independent operator of locking systems and architectural hardware and the
and transform the ways in which we live. For more
wireless telecommunications infrastructure, with a total worlds leading developer of products in the field of
information, visit our website.
portfolio of over 18,000 sites. From January to September electromechanical locking technology. We develop safe,
2016 Cellnex obtained revenues of 520 million (+15%) aesthetic and easy-to-use locking solutions which satisfy
www.intelsat.com
and EBITDA of 208 million (+18%). Cellnex is present in the needs of end-users and our construction industry
Italy, Spain, France, Holland and now the UK. partners for security, safety and ease-of-access.
Cellnex classifies its activities into three areas: Mobile

TowerXchange Meetup Europe Investors Club
ABLOY protects people, property, and business operations
telephony infrastructures; audiovisual broadcasting
Sponsored by New Street Research
on land, at sea, and in the air in all circumstances.
networks; and security and emergency service networks Solutions created for users individual need extend
and solutions for smart urban infrastructure and services from locking of homes to sites of operations requiring
management (smart cities and the Internet of Things professionally provided high security.
(IoT)).
Both the trust users place in us and our pioneering
New Street Research position are based on long-term endeavours
www.cellnextelecom.com/en/
continuously developing new and innovative locking
BRONZE SPONSOR: solutions and door-opening technologies that facilitate
New Street Research is an independent research
firm specializing in telecommunications equity and smooth entry and exit. The position of ABLOY as one of
the four global brands of ASSA ABLOY Group supports
debt research. We apply an in-depth, fundamental
Intelsat our internationalization process and empowers us to
approach to research that draws on decades of
strengthen our business in existing markets and to expand
telecom, technology, and policy expertise. We strive
Intelsat S.A. (NYSE: I) operates the worlds first Globalized into new areas.
to develop differentiated investment insights that
Network, delivering high-quality, cost-effective video and www.abloy.com
impact institutional investors, company executives,
broadband services anywhere in the world. Intelsats Exhibitor:
and government policy-makers. Our team of 20
Globalized Network combines the worlds largest satellite
dedicated analysts based in New York, London,
backbone with terrestrial infrastructure, managed
and Singapore, giving us a truly global and unique
services and an open, interoperable architecture to NorthStar Battery
perspective on trends across the telecom landscape.
enable customers to drive revenue and reach through NorthStar delivers reliable and sustainable power to the
a new generation of network services. Thousands of www.newstreetresearch.com world, by designing and manufacturing high performance
organizations serving billions of people worldwide rely batteries and energy-saving battery cabinets. NorthStar
Our exhibitors
products are built to provide longer battery life and reduced managementsolutions including the ASCO, Chloride, Exhibitor:
environmental impact. Liebert, NetSure and Trellis brands.
Asentria
The company has state-of-the-art facilities in the USA and
Telecom and IT infrastructure solutions from Vertiv deliver
Sweden, and their products are used in more than 150 Asentria provides solutions for mobile network and tower
purposefully designed and integrated hardware, software,
countries worldwide. NorthStar can cut your operating costs operators to manage power, security, and environmental
andservices that enable your network infrastructure
with their long life products, high operating temperatures issues at remote cell sites from their network operations
to be as dynamic as your business. Ranging from site
and efficient battery cooling. center. Telecom sites are evolving to include many
planning to testand turn-up, our experience and dedicated
The new NorthStar ACE is the future of energy storage new intelligent subsystem controllers for DC rectifiers,
approach to providing turnkey solutions will compliment
management, an Internet of Things concept that allows you generators, cameras, access controllers, and HVAC. Asentria
your businessinvestment. For more information, visit our
to monitor your batteries remotely using Bluetooth and the securely integrates these sub-systems into our hardware
website.
cloud. based site controller to present a single interface for
management of power, security and environment at remote
www.northstarbattery.com www.vertivco.com
sites. Beyond simple alarming, Asentria generates data for
Exhibitor: Exhibitor: comparative site analysis and provides remote access to the
underlying systems for OPEX reducing cell site optimization.
Dantherm
www.asentria.com
Leoch Battery Pte. Ltd TELECOMINDUSTRY ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT COOLING Exhibitor:
We, Leoch Battery Pte. Ltd, established in 1999, located at With morethan 20 years of developing and producing
1 Tech Park Crescent, Tuas, Singapore 638131. Were an cooling solutions for the Telecomindustry, Dantherm knows
Beijing Dynamic Power Co., Ltd.
international new high- tech enterprise listed on the Main the business and thechallenges met by networkoperators
Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (stock code: 842), and suppliers. Beijing Dynamic Power Co., Ltd. (DPC) is a leading
manufacturer of Telecom Power Supply in Beijing China.
specialize in research and development, manufacturing,
Drivedown costs, maximize uptime Established in 1995 who are the China first IPO (Initial
sales and marketing of full categories of lead-acid battery.
Oursolutions are customized for the Telecom industry and Public Offerings) company in power supply industry in
www.leoch.com provide reliable,energy-efficient heat removal from shelters, Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2004 Over 2,400,000 Rectifier
cabinets,enclosures and roomscontaining temperature- modules operating on Carrier Networks globally and
Exhibitor:
sensitive electronic and telecommunications equipment. 30% market share in China owned by Carriers/China
Tower(Ranking No.1 in China Tower). More than 20 years of
Vertiv
Thismakes Dantherm the preferred partner for electronics experience in diversity power solutions for tower company.
cooling and substantiatesour position as the leading global Over 3000 employees with the main production base of 330,
Vertiv designs, builds and services critical infrastructure
supplier of climatecontrol solutions. 000m2, with production capacity of 80,000 pcs rectifiers and
that enables vital applications for communication networks
15,000 sets systems per month. DPCs stable high efficient
aswell as data centres and commercial and industrial Meet your2020 energy ambition now with Dantherms and cost effective Power Supply create maximum value for
facilities. Formerly Emerson Network Power, Vertiv supports energy saving cooling products. carriers and tower company.
todaysgrowing mobile and cloud computing markets
with a portfolio of power, thermal and infrastructure www.dantherm.com/gb/electronics-cooling/ www.dpc.com.cn
Tower
Transactions
2016 saw sale and leaseback deals, industry mergers,
IPOs, carve outs and international expansion in the
European tower market. Its clear that European tower
owners and investors arent going to stick to a script,
in such a rapidly-growing market the parameters
for engineering creative deals to suit infrastructure
owners, their tenants and potential tenants are
numerous. In this section of the dossier we asses
some of the biggest deals of 2016, including Cellnexs
acquisitions of Shere and Protelindo and ATC Europes
FPS deal. We also explore the IPOs which did and didnt
happen and assess what factors contributed to the
outcome of each process.
58 Cellnex/Shere
61 Telxius IPO
65 Global Tower IPO
68 ATC/FPS
74Cellnex/Protelindo
www.towerxchange.com
Shere brilliance
Cellnex have undertaken a series of growth
investments in Europe over the past two years,
deploying approximately 1.4bn. This means that
Cellnexs new acquisition at present almost 40% of company revenues are

generated outside Spain. A solid asset, the Shere
Cellnex consolidate their position in Netherlands and enter the UK market Group deal puts the organisation in a strong position,
Cellnex CEO, Tobias Martinez stating that, Once we
through acquisition of Arcus Shere Group complete the acquisition of Shere, will have a backlog
(contracted sales for the coming years) of 8.4bn.
In October 2016 Cellnex announced the
acquisition of 100% of Shere Group for Jack Colbourne, Partner at Arcus, lead asset manager
393mn ($440.67mn), trebling their number and board member for Shere commented, Arcus
personnel have been involved in Shere going right
of sites in the Netherlands from 261 to 725
back to its inception in 2004, and we have supported
through the addition of 464 Shere sites and
the same management team throughout that period
acquiring a small but healthy portfolio of 540 as the company grew by more than 10 times in terms
sites in the UK. Integrating Sheres assets will of revenues and cashflow. We have played an active
provide estimated annualised revenues of role in shaping the direction of a company which
29mn, two thirds of which are derived from operates within a niche infrastructure sector that is
both fast growing and constantly changing. We are
the Netherlands and a third from the UK.
extremely pleased with how Shere has developed
over our period of ownership.
Keywords: Access Control, Acquisition,
Build-to-Suit, Business Model, DAS, Deal TowerXchange also put a few questions to Alfonso
Structure, Europe, Europe News, Europe lvarez, International Business Manager at Cellnex,
Research, Market Entry, News, Small Cells, about the deal.
Alfonso lvarez, International Business Manager, Cellnex
Tenancy Ratios, Valuation
TowerXchange: Congratulations on announcing
the agreement to acquire Shere Group. What did
Read this article to learn: you like about this company?
< Why Cellnex selected Shere Group as an acquisition target
< How the deal affects Cellnexs position in key markets Alfonso lvarez, International Business Manager,
< Operational management plans for the new acquisition Cellnex: A key driver in this acquisition has been the
< Cellnexs opinin on small cell and DAS rollouts in their European markets ability to further consolidate Cellnexs position in The
Netherlands, integrating a portfolio of assets which
densify our network of sites, does not overlap with Shere and a handful of smaller towercos. How do managing operations in the UK and The Netherlands
the assets being acquired from Protelindo and, last you anticipate the competitive dynamics playing and will become a key part of Cellnexs international
but not least, it contributes with a high tenancy ratio out between those stakeholders? management team.
improving the overall portfolios quality.
Alfonso lvarez, International Business Manager, TowerXchange: The MNOs, Arqiva and WIG have
Moreover, the fact that Shere Group involves as Cellnex: It is difficult to assess. The UK market is already rolled out DAS and small cells at some of
well a solid portfolio of greenfield as well as tower quite attractive as it is one with the highest level of the most obvious venues in the UK - how would
assets in the UK has been a positive externality that outsourced telecom infrastructure. The UK is the you characterise the maturity of the small cell
we assessed as a positive move as well and thus closest European market to the US benchmark. At rollout there and where do you see opportunities
reinforced the case for the acquisition. the same time it looks quite stable with CTIL and for Cellnex?
MBNL as strong MNOs joint ventures controlling a
TowerXchange: This transaction sees Cellnex substantial portion of the tower market. Alfonso lvarez, International Business Manager,
doubling down on your investment in The Cellnex: The DAS and small cells deployments
Netherlands - how much overlap is there For sure there is a space for consolidation among are still in their first steps and consistently their
between the Shere and the Protelindo towers? independent operators, but the key driver business models are evolving as well. What we know
And how does the addition of the Shere sites for Cellnex in the case of Shere has been the is that the opportunity is there for the independent
impact the tenancy mix and tenancy ratio of the consolidation in The Netherlands. Now we have a telco infrastructure operators as it seems reasonable
consolidated portfolio? foot as well in the UK, which offers as visibility of to think that multi-operator approaches will play a
the market and profiles us as a new actor. Beyond of role. This is valid for all European markets. What
Alfonso lvarez, International Business Manager, this the whole market picture has not changed. we can expect in terms of market potential, speed of
Cellnex: The fact that there is no overlapping deployment and time to market of the upcoming LTE
between Shere and Protelindo assets in The TowerXchange: What can you tell us about your generation remains still open, as it will be a process
Netherlands has been featured as one of the operational management plans for the UK and implying as well this kind of turn around of the
drivers of this deal. As already underlined in the Netherlands - have local country managers been involved business models.
first question the addition improves both tenancy appointed? Will the Shere Group management
mix and ratio especially when we consider Cellnex team be transitioning to Cellnex and playing a TowerXchange: With CTIL making up around 34%
Netherlandss assets as stand alone. In terms of role? of Sheres UK business, what does the UK tenancy
consolidated portfolio it improves the tenancy ratio mix look like and how will it develop?
but its impact is less visible as it represents a small Alfonso lvarez, International Business Manager,
piece of the whole Cellnexs asset portfolio. Cellnex: We are right now at the beginning of the Alfonso lvarez, International Business Manager,
integration process. As Cellnexs footprint expands Cellnex: Tenancy ratio of towers deployed on
TowerXchange: The UK tower market is uniquely into new European markets the company does not existing Sheres UK sites is 1.6x as it has been
structured with around a third of the towers each only integrate assets, but it integrates mainly talent, reported. Organic growth prospects will be
split between MNO joint ventures CTIL and MBNL market know how and management skills. So, monitored as in any other market in order to
and an independent sector led by Arqiva, WIG, yes, the Shere Group team will play a leading role improve key productivity indicators
The TowerXchange Viewpoint
Although the closed doors nature of this deal meant it came as a surprise to the industry,
acquiring Shere Group seems a natural step for Europes most acquisitive towerco, Cellnex. Given
the size of their portfolios in Spain and Italy (7,413 and 7,725 towers respectively), Cellnex thrive
in the position of key market leader and wont be satisfied with a handful of towers in a market Meetup Europe 2017
unless it opens the door to a bigger opportunity. 4-5 April, London
The first and most obvious advantage of this deal is that it allows Cellnex to become one of the
biggest independent towercos in the Netherlands, a very stable and attractive European economy.
Shere Groups Dutch towers have a healthy tenancy ratio of 2.7x.
Meetup Americas
2017
What does this mean for Cellnexs remaining small toeholds? Well, their interest in FPS in France,
7-8 June, Boca Raton
which would boost their recently acquired 230 sites to just shy of 3,000 land based towers, is
public knowledge. In the UK they will own a portfolio of 540 sites, which puts them in fifth
position behind CTIL, MBNL, Arqiva and WIG, however prospective operator consolidation and
Arqivas plans for reducing debt mean that, although less of a quick win, the potential to acquire a Meetup Africa
significant portfolio in one of Europes leading economies could be huge.
& ME 2017
Shere Groups majority owners Arcus Infrastructure Partners exceeded their original return
targets through the exit. 3-4 October, Johannesburg
Cellnex and Arqiva are both at their heart telecom-broadcast towercos the synergies are
obvious could the Spanish firm be jockeying to make an offer the indebted Arqiva could not Meetup Asia 2017
refuse? Could the Cellnex balance sheet absorb another major acquisition without significant
12-13 December, Singapore
restructuring? Its interesting that Cellnex have focused on the amplification of their Dutch
presence in justifying this transaction: is their entry into the UK really only a fortunate by-product
of a Dutch-centric deal? Or are they bluffing? For Cellnex a small gamble on gaining influence in
the UK market could reap huge rewards www.towerxchange.com
Why the Telxius IPO **UPDATE**
was cancelled Telefonica has agreed to sell a 40% stake in

Telxius to KKR, beating bidders including GIC
TowerXchange seeks to derive lessons learned from the cancelled IPO Private, CVC Capital Partners, and Ardian,
of Telefnicas towerco who were all believed to be interested in
the asset. The deal is valued at 1.3bn and
Investors were underwhelmed by includes a call option for 62mn Telxius shares
the package of infrastructure assets for 790.5n
Telefnica brought to market and,
despite a downward recalibration Its no secret that Telefnica has been increasingly
keen to restructure their balance sheet, relieve
of valuation, ultimately rejected the
debts in excess of 50bn, and raise capital for
proposition. What specifically did dividends to prop up their valuation. With their
they not like about Telxius, what effort to raise capital through the proposed sale of
lessons can be learned, and what next O2 in the UK to Hutchison blocked by the European
for Telefnicas towers? Commission, Telefnica brought forward plans to
monetise a 40% stake in infrastructure carve out
Telxius, which had been inaugurated in February
Keywords: Americas, Americas
2016.
Insights, Bankability, Carve Out,
Telefnica bundled 31,000km of subsea cable, plus
Europe, Europe Insights, Exit Strategy,
all 11,000 of their towers in Spain and a selected
Global Tower, IPO, Insights, Investment,
2,350 of an estimated 14,318 sites in Germany. The
MLA, Rooftop, Tax, Telefnica, Telesites, package of European towers was supplemented by
By Kieron Osmotherly, Founder & CEO, TowerXchange
Telxius, Towercos, Turkcell, Valuation 1,655 towers in Brazil, 849 in Peru, and 328 from
Chile.
Read this article to learn: Why did investors balk at Telefnicas 3-3.75bn
< Why demand from investors proved inadequate valuation of Telxius?
< What assets were included, and excluded, from Telxius
< What Telefnica might do next One obvious concern voiced by investors
< Transferrable lessons learned TowerXchange has spoken to was the challenge
valuing the subsea cable component of Telxius, from
Timeline of the creation and cancellation of Telxius
Pre Mar 2015 Mar 2015 Sept 2015 Oct 2015 Dec 2015 Jan 2016 Jan 2016
Telefnicas net debt Telefnica reaches CFO Angel Vila The European Bloomberg reports Ofcoms Sharon White News circulates that
more than doubles over an agreement with hints at a potential Commission launches Telefnica to be meets EU Competition Telefnica is carving out
the course of a decade Hutchison to sell monetisation of an investigation considering a carve out Commissioner Margrethe its ~11,000 Spanish towers
following numerous UK O2 business for Telefnicas towers Hutchisons takeover of 60,000 towers into Vestager to urge her to into new infrastructure
acquisitions across Europe 10.25bn to help tackle in his Q3 investor of O2 an infrastructure unit block the O2 takeover unit, Wireless Towers
and Latin America escalating debt presentation
Feb 2016 Mar 2016 Mar 2016 Aprl 2016 Aprl 2016 Aprl 2016 Aprl 2016 May 2016 Jun 2016 Sept 2016 Oct 2016 Feb 2017
Telefnica announces the Movistar Chile Telefnica Telefnica Speculation Telefnica Reports EC blocks July IPO Telefonica Telxius IPO Telefonica
creation of Telxius saying it announces Peru Brasil mounting Deutschland circulate that Hutchisons date plan to cancelled considering
will initially consist of about the sale of announces announces that the EC announces Telefnica takeover of postponed list 40% of after offers
15,000 phone towers and an 328 towers the sale of the sale of will block the sale of plans to list O2 following Telxius on inadequate from four
international submarine- to Telxius for 849 towers 1,655 towers Hutchisons 2,350 towers Telxius on market October 3 to demand investors
cable network covering CLP7.85bn to Telxius to Telxius for takeover of to Telxius for the Madrid uncertainty raise up to from for the sale
31,000 kilometers with (10.4mn) BRL760mn O2 as the 587mn Stock created by 1.5bn investors of 49% of
more assets being included (192.6mn) deadline for Exchange in Brexit vote Telxius
gradually over coming
their review early July
months. Telefnicas ~11,000
approaches
Spanish towers are known to
be included. Alberto Horcajo
is announced as CEO Source: TowerXchange
which 60% of the infracos revenues were derived. subsea and tower business, would the valuation control? Evidently a gap emerged between what
Investors are simply less familiar with subsea cable discount necessitated by the cable element bring the Telefnica thought the business was worth and the
businesses, and what comps there were suggested tower valuation significantly below the multiple a value the capital markets would ascribe it.
a valuation around 7x, less than half the multiple company like Cellnex might pay for just the towers Some investors cited a concern as to why Telefnica
Telefnica hoped their towers were worth. in a sale and leaseback? was retaining some towers yet bundling others into
Telxius; were strategic, high value towers being
If Telefnica were to monetise a consolidated And what value did Telefnica place on retaining retained on the MNOs balance sheet? We think not
renegotiated if Telefnicas stake fell below a certain
Transferrable lessons learned from the cancelled Telxius IPO percentage. Even if Telefnica intended to retain a
majority stake, valuation benchmarks against other
If MNOs want to carve out towers, retain a investment proposition from a pureplay public towercos are less meaningful if there is no
controlling stake yet utilise the capital markets independent towerco. Cellnex and American prospective future sale to a strategic. And a strategic
to release some capital, they should allow at Tower are imperfect valuation benchmarks. could not buy Telxius at full value if all the contracts
least 18-24 months to establish their modus The valuation of a towerco is a function of the would need renegotiating.
operandi and to prove the concept. Telxius investibility of its MSA, and if the MSA grants
follows an underwhelming debut of America favourable terms to a controlling-interest Tower industry insiders were quick to point out
Movils towerco Telesites at the turn of the year, retaining parent MNO, such as preferential lease that most of Telefnicas Brazilian towers had been
but both ventures might have elicited a more rates, most favoured nation clauses, RANsharing offered to towercos in their sale and leaseback
favourable response from the capital markets provisions or substantial reserve space, then transactions, and only remained on Telefnicas
had management teams been bedded in, with valuations should rightly be downwardly books as a result of being swapped for better sites.
the first wave of improvement capex deployed adjusted.
One simple illustration of this: many of Telxius
and the sites proactively marketed for a couple of
Brazilian towers are relatively small and lack the
quarters, enabling would-be investors to quantify MNOs often seem to be tempted to bundle a
structural capacity to accommodate heavy lease up.
pent-up demand for co-location. variety of infrastructure assets into these carve
outs to maximise scale. If youre creating, but
Finally, the Telxius IPO looked hasty. Global comps
Telefnica were not alone in having to cancel not monetising, a newco infraco you can put
suggest it takes one to two years for new carve out
the IPO of a carve-out towerco in 2016. Turkcell anything you want in the package. But bear in
towercos to tidy up their asset register, identify
suffered the same fate. With 20:20 hindsight it mind that there are hundreds of investors with
and upgrade (where necessary) sites where there
can be easy to blame investment bankers for a taste for towers, who are comfortable valuing
might be pent up demand, and to prove their ability
inflated valuations, but the fact remains that passive infrastructure, and who currently value it
an operator-led towerco is a very different to lease up sites and sweat the assets. Telxius was
highly. Why dilute the premium product?
simply not given long enough to prove its worth as
- the 11,968 sites Telefnica retained in Germany with devaluation of the local currency, and an an independent entity.
were mostly (perhaps entirely) rooftops rather than unfavorable tax regime, makes the monetisation of
ground based towers, and rooftops are notoriously towers difficult in the immediate term; meanwhile What Telefnica might do next
difficult to co-locate at good margins in Germany the government stake in Telefnicas operations in
due to landlord demands. Colombia likely precluded the inclusion of those So what next for Telefnicas towers?
towers.
Another concern: why were so few LatAm towers While it might be tempting to fall back on the
transferred to Telxius? TowerXchange feel there is Ultimately the value of any towerco is a sum of the security that the IPO was the victim of macro-
justification in excluding Argentinian towers from value of their contracts and, among other concerns, economics (Brexit and the surprise US election
Telxius as the depreciation of the assets, combined the Telxius MSA required that all contracts be result combined to undermine investor confidence
in equities across every sector), TowerXchange
dont think that is the sole explanation. The
towerco asset class remains in vogue, and investors
would have welcomed a viable multi-country
independent towerco platform to compete with
Cellnex in consolidating European towers. With
a different package of assets, and a revised MSA,
Telxius may have found the capital markets more
receptive.
Telxius still looks like a good play in the long

term; tidy it up and lease up the assets for a year,
reengineer the MSA if investor sentiment towards
Argentina continues to improve (particularly if the
government responds to pressure to ease certain
taxation conditions adversely affecting tower
valuations), maybe add the Argentinian towers. If
there are other ground based towers in Germany
that could be included, they should be included.
Consider extracting the submarine cable business
but, if it is to remain in the bundle, perhaps focus
on investor education to help them get more
comfortable with the mash-up. Visit the TowerXchange.com website
Telxius could reboot their IPO in 2017-18 and list
< Access to the Internet of People in the global tower < A comprehensive archive of TowerXchanges
successfully for a similar valuation which they
industry a trust web of over 35,000 decision makers interviews and analyses, searchable by topic, country,
sought in October 2016. Telefnica has appointed a
in telecom and broadcast infrastructure company or grouped by category (e.g. interviews or
capable management team at Telxius I for one am how to guides)
glad well have the opportunity to see how they can
< Independent analysis and commentaries on the
add value before the asset is monetised. prospects for tower transactions in selected countries < The latest news and registration information about
TowerXchanges Meetups.
In the meantime, if Telefnica needs to raise some < The latest industry emerging market tower industry
cash, there will be no shortage of independent
towercos queueing up to cash in their Spanish,
news BEFORE its published in the TowerXchange
Journal, accessible 24/7 from desktop, tablet or mobile Tower Xchange
German, Peruvian, Chilean or Argentinian towers!
A change of heart:
What was on offer?
Founded in 2006 by Turkcell, Turkeys largest mobile
Turkcell postpones Global Tower network operator, Global Tower manages 7,994
towers in Turkey, 1,181 towers in Ukraine under
IPO at the last moment subsidiary UKR Tower, plus a further 800 towers in
Belarus and Northern Cyprus. Of the Turkish towers
under management, around half of them are owned
TowerXchange analysis of the decision, plus some exclusive comments from outright by Global Tower and the other half are
Global Towers CEO owned by Turkcell and either leased or managed by
Global Tower, indicating that the status and value
The latest tower news to come out of Turkey. is the eleventh hour of the portfolio in Turkey is variable with some
postponement of the Global Tower IPO by Turkeys leading MNO, towers available for co-location and others simply
Turkcell. Citing market uncertainty caused by the US elections and managed for Turkcell by Global Tower.
cyber attacks, Turkcell announced the postponement of the listing
of their carve out towerco Global Tower, which had been planned Why IPO?
for October 27th. Having considered the potential impacts of
the upcoming United States presidential election and the FEDs Despite Turkish MNOs traditionally being keen to
expected interest rate decision on the financial markets as well hang on to their infrastructure as a competitive
as cyberattacks, and in agreement with its major shareholder differentiator, Turkcell clearly sees potential in their
Turkcell, Global Tower has postponed its initial listing on Borsa Global Tower asset. As the towers are already carved
Istanbul planned for October 27 until the markets become more out and managed as a separate entity, with many
reliable and stable, the company said in a statement. supporting multiple tenants and already generating
revenues estimated to be around TRY$200mn
Keywords: Anchor Tenant, Belarus, Carve Out, Country Risk, Cyprus, Europe, Europe News, Global (around US$60mn) and an EBITDA of around
Tower, IPO, News, Turkey, Turkcell, Ukraine, UKR Tower, Valuation TRY100mn (US$30mn), the asset is already market-
ready.
Read this article to learn: In April 2015, Turkcell appointed a new CEO, Kaan
< Why Global Tower originally planned an IPO Terziolu, whose background working for Cisco and
< When and how the IPO was postponed in the US and Europe is believed to make him more
< Potential reasons for the postponement of the listing inclined towards outsourcing and lighter operations
across the organisation. Turkcell also announced in
< Options for Global Tower in 2017
June 2016 its plans to refocus away from declining
< Exclusive comment from Global Tower on the postponement
Turkish revenue and to grow international

revenues from 7% of total revenue to almost 40% Valuation and IPO confidence
by expanding into North Africa, Eastern Europe, the
Middle East and Central Asia. Theres no doubt that Turkcell planned to list 25% of Global Tower, which
the capital which might have been raised from a is a fairly small commitment compared to the
Global Tower IPO would be significant in supporting if Turkcell were expecting to achieve percentages listed by Cellnex, INWIT and proposed
this international expansion. Cellnex-like multiples of 16/17x by Telxius over the last 18 months. The price range
EBITDA from the IPO, then the was believed to have been set at TRY 3.82-4.46 per
Why might the deal have been postponed? share. With 345mn shares coming to market and
reality of a potentially significantly
limited net debt, this suggested an EV of TRY 1,318
Unstable political and economic environment lower valuation may well have given to 1,539mn, around US$400-500mn. TowerXchange
them cause to reconsider the move, sources suggested revenue per tower of TRY44,000
particularly as TowerXchange have
Recep Tayyip Erdogan was sworn in as Turkish
president in August 2014, following a highly
successful 12 years as premier, during which
the Turkish economy tripled in dollar terms.
heard rumours that a trade sale
was discussed over the summer and
rejected in favour of the IPO
(around US$14,000). Based on an assumption that
only 3,393 Global Tower-owned Turkish and 1,181
Ukrainian towers were revenue generating, this
suggests a 12-15x EV/EBITDA multiple.
However, Turkey is a parliamentary republic and
the presidency is a largely ceremonial role, so Following the success of the Cellnex and INWIT IPOs
many believe Mr Erdogan is seeking to change the in 2015, interest in raising funds through the IPO of
constitution to create an executive presidency. in Turkeys credit rating to continue over the next tower assets has gained a large amount of interest in
two to three years. the tower industry. However, unlike Cellnex, whose
On 15 July 2016, an attempted coup was carried out business revolves around maximising tenancies and
by members of the Turkish armed forces, during But its not just domestic political instability in profits, operator captive towercos such as Global
which over 300 people were killed. The coup was Turkey causing alarm. The ongoing uncertainty Tower have additional hurdles to overcome to
unsuccessful and Ergodans regime responded around the US elections, Brexit causing instability demonstrate their value in the market. Questions
by making mass arrests, estimated in the region in Europe, increasing tensions between Russia abound around operators ability to deliver the
of 40,000 detainees, across the country. Theories and the West, and the migrant crisis in Syria, best of both worlds and reserve space for their
abound about the cause of the coup and the which has affected Turkey more heavily than any parent company and anchor tenant, safeguard
motivations behind it and the ensuing government European country, are all unbalancing markets and their competitive position, while also extracting the
action. economies, both on a local and global level. maximum potential value from leasing up the tower
network.
Ratings agency Moodys cut Turkeys long-term However, while political and economic uncertainty
issuer and senior unsecured bond ratings by one may have contributed to the decision to postpone, It seems likely that, if Turkcell were expecting to
notch to Ba1 with a stable outlook in September there were no significant events in the weeks prior achieve Cellnex-like multiples of 16/17x EBITDA
2016 placing the countrys credit rating in junk to the postponement which could alone be blamed from the IPO, then the reality of a potentially
territory and saying it expects that the deterioration for a sudden change of heart. significantly lower valuation may well have given

Alpha Group (which currently owns a 13.2% stake) and that Turkcell still have a desire to monetise this
acquiring Cukurovas 13.8% stake by 28 November valuable asset to support their plans for international
2016. Such uncertainty among shareholders has expansion. It may be that their disappointment in
already hampered Turkcells development and the IPO valuation encourages Turkcell to reassess
We had received a satisfactory prevented the payment of certain dividends, it the benefits of a trade sale, perhaps to a strategic
may well be that this is a contributory factor in the partner who can support their growing network
demand from the international
postponement of their satellite tower business. needs overseas as well as domestically. On the other
institutional investors which hand, they may well choose to wait until the markets
motivated us further about our What next? are a little more settled, as Global Tower represents a
tower business. Especially large- portfolio of towers with a strong anchor tenant, good
TowerXchange believes that the Global Tower IPO growth opportunities and a successful ten year track
sized long-only investors who
is very much postponed as opposed to cancelled record
showed interest in investing in
Global Tower have confirmed our
trust in the fundamentals of our
business - Nihat Narin, CEO,
TowerXchange exclusive Q&A with Global Tower CEO Nihat Narin
about the recent IPO postponement
TowerXchange: Can you shed any light on the relaunch the process once the markets become
Global Tower decision to postpone the Global Tower IPO? more stable and reliable. In that regard, we will
wait until after the US presidential elections and
Nihat Narin, CEO, Global Tower: We had received FED interest rate decision, both of which have an
them cause to reconsider the move, particularly as a satisfactory demand from the international impact on the global financial markets.
TowerXchange have heard rumours that a trade institutional investors which motivated us further
sale was discussed over the summer and rejected in about our tower business. Especially large- TowerXchange: Would Turkcell consider a
favour of the IPO. sized long-only investors who showed interest trade sale of Global Tower under the right
in investing in Global Tower have confirmed circumstances?
Investor Uncertainty our trust in the fundamentals of our business.
Overall, the level of interest from U.K., Europe Nihat Narin, CEO, Global Tower: With a view to
In addition to the above factors, a decade-long and Turkey was comparatively higher than that of a more focused management of Global Tower,
disagreement among Turkcells shareholders the States. and to transforming it into a regional tower
looks like it may be resolved soon, which could company, the first planned step was its initial
disrupt the decision making process of Global Our understanding is that the cyber-attacks public offering, now postponed to 2017. Investor
Towers parent company. A disagreement between
have negatively impacted our process, limiting interest in Global Tower during its IPO process
Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridmans Alpha Group,
access to the Internet. Thus, we have decided to has strengthened our confidence in our tower
and Cukurova, owned by Turkcell founder Mehmet
postpone the IPO for now. We have planned to business model
Emin Karamehmet which could result in Fridmans
The American dream: American Tower In October 2016, it was believed that as many as ten
bidders were competing for FPS Towers, including
Cellnex, Europes leading home-grown towerco who
announces acquisition of FPS Towers have been on something of a buying spree in Europe
recently, and 3i, investors in the UKs Wireless
American Tower to make first European acquisition in four years Infrastructure Group (WIG), whose intention
was to create a new model of European towerco
On 19 December 2016 American Tower platform. Although the remaining bidders were not
named, it is believed that other US towercos and
announced the acquisition of French FPS
infrastructure investors made up the majority of the
Towers for 697mn. The deal has held the interested parties and that in the final rounds the
attention of the European tower market bidding was between 3i/WIG, Cellnex and eventual
since the summer, when Antin Infrastructure winners American Tower. Were keen to delve a
Partners announced their intention to find a little deeper into the events which ran up to this
deal, and speculate about what this might mean for
buyer for the entrepreneurial towerco. In this
all the parties involved.
editorial we will review what both FPS and
American Tower bring to the table, discuss Who are FPS and what was on offer?
some of the dynamics which influenced the
bidding process, and share some exclusive FPS Towers was formed in 2012 by Antin
Infrastructure Partners to acquire and manage
comment from American Tower as to their
2,051 towers acquired from Bouygues Telecom.
thoughts on the deal. Since then, their ambitious growth strategy led to
the acquisition of Loxel, a rooftop management
Keywords: Acquisition, American Tower, Anchor Tenant, Bouygues, Cellnex, Deal Structure, Editorial, organisation, in 2015, the lease up and growth of
their core portfolio to 2,482 towers, supplemented
Europe, Europe News, Exit Strategy, FPS, France, Germany, Infrastructure Funds, News, Rooftop, Sale &
by an innovative programme focused on securing
Leaseback, SBATDF, Tenancy Ratios, Wireless Infrastructure Group
hundreds of public and municipal structures used in
telecom networks.
Read this article to learn: FPS Towers was established to animate a French
< What FPS brought to the table tower market dominated by broadcast tower giant
< Why the acquisition was a good fit for American Tower TDF, and they have certainly disrupted the market
< The details of the deal and bidding process in several ways, by gaining toeholds in alternative
< Exclusive comment from American Tower on the deal site typologies across France.
FPS management team focused on securing
hundreds of public and municipal structures used What is the breakdown of the high sites used by the French telecom
in telecom networks. FPS have been able to secure industry? And who owns them?
these sites under a contractual term like a concession
under which they can attain a 30 year renewable 13
lease, with rights very close to those of a site owner.
12 10
11
Some of these public sites have to be tenaciously 9
and painstakingly acquired one by one, others can 8
14
be found aggregated in deals like one FPS reached
in December 2015 with highways operator APRR to
7
6
secure 300 sites. 5
1
By acquiring rooftop aggregator LOXEL in 2015, FPS 4
were able to offer up front payments to secure 20-30
year rooftop leases, and make them available for co-
location. This model has the potential to unlock huge
potential in the French market, however, as LOXELs 3
offering centres around brokering, rather than
2
control or management of rooftop sites, the extent
to which these contracts could transfer into a source
of recurring revenue will have been a key factor in
valuing this segment of the portfolio.
FPS positioned themselves as a towerco with a

foothold in both the rooftop and alternate site
markets, enabling them to form win-win-win Ground based towers Rooftops structures with telecom equipment
partnerships with their customers and landlords. 1. Orange 8,100 9. Rooftops sites sourced directly by MNOs 13,090
2. SFR 5,300 10. Rooftop sites provided by TDF 301
3. TDF 4,865 11. Rooftop sites provided by FPS Towers 159
In the midst of the FPS Towers sale process,
4. FPS/American Tower 2,482 12. Rooftop sites sold to Cellnex 1,450
Bouygues Telecom are believed to have brought to
5. Cellnex (acquired from Bouygues) 850
market a couple of thousand rooftops. Bouygues 6. Free 350 Rooftops without telecom equipment installed,
established relationship with Cellnex (who have 7. Other structures not belonging to towercos or but for which a towerco has a commercialisation
acquired 500 of their macro towers in 2016 for a total MNOs 2,900 agreement:
of 147mn), and TDFs need to maintain the upper 13. TDF 2,985
hand in the French market means these assets are 8. Other ground based structures 7,500 14. FPS Towers 20,000
highly desirable. The fact they represent a chance to
Sources: TowerXchange research, ANFR, FPS Towers, TDF
acquire MNO rooftops, as opposed to FPS brokering
Number of towers acquired by American Tower since 2012 one of the most coveted assets on the continent in a
competitive process.
50,000
The deal
40,000
Although speculation that the deal value could reach
1bn was rife, American Towers price of 697mn
30,000 seems more in line with other recent European
valuations.
20,000 42,581
36,668 French newspaper Les Echos reported in August
that FPS was projecting a turnover of 70mn and
10,000 EBITDA of 45mn for 2016, and ATCs own report on
the French market puts FPS Year One revenues at
2,197
6,450 ~60mn with a gross margin of ~80%, bringing their
EBITDA to a similar 48mn for 2017. This would
Latin America Africa India Europe place their valuation at around 14.5-15.4x EBITDA,
perhaps not as high as some recent optimistic
offering, may have diminished the perceived value of time period, while only growing their European valuations might have guessed, but certainly a
this part of FPS portfolio, while offering bidders an portfolio by 166 towers. During this time Cellnex solid result given that FPS Towers owners Antin
alternate means of achieving scale in France. deployed just shy of 1.8bn to acquire 13,861 Infrastructure deployed just 205mn to acquire the
towers in Europe across five countries. core portfolio only four years ago.
How does the acquisition fit with American
Towers European strategy? In October 2016, after four years of minimal M&A Why did American Tower succeed in such a
activity in Europe, American Tower announced contested sale?
In 2012, American Tower acquired 2,031 towers the formation of a joint venture with Dutch
from KPN (now E-Plus) in Germany for 393mn, pension fund PGGM to form ATC Europe with a Of the ten bidders for the FPS towers, American
increasing that number to 2,197 towers in the focus on pursuing telecommunications real estate Tower have succeeded in acquiring this popular
country over four years. When compared to investment opportunities in Europe. At the time French asset and seem to have achieved a
American Towers activity in the other markets there was some speculation as to whether this reasonable valuation. Of the other bidders we know
where they own assets, their investments in Europe indicated a readiness to engage more deeply with to have been involved in the process, Cellnex were
seemed remarkably small, given they invested the growing European tower market, or a desire to probably one of the favourites, having a toe hold in
around US$1.2bn in acquiring 6,450 towers in dilute ATCs exposure to the slow moving German the French market already, and having rolled up
Africa, US$1.2bn in 42,581 towers in India and tower market. As it happens, it didnt take long for two smaller European towercos already in the last
$8.9bn in 36,668 towers in Latin America during this ATC Europe to show their hand, acquiring possibly 12 months in Shere Group and Protelindo NV.
Tower sales and valuations in France since 2012
Number of Average cost EBITDA EBITDA
Year Seller Buyer Amount paid
towers per tower (mns) x
2016 Antin Infrastructure Parners American Tower 2,482 697,000,000 280,821 45 15.4x
2015 ITAS TDF 420 100,000,000* 238,095
2014 Bouygues Cellnex 270 67,000,000 248,148
2013 Bouygues Cellnex 230 80,000,000 347,826
2012 TDF Brookfield 7,398* 3,600,000,000 N/A 358.8 10x
2011 Bouygues Telecom Antin Infrastructure Partners 2,166 205,000,000 111,346**
* Number of towers in France, not including international towers or non-tower assets Source: TowerXchange
**Adjusted to reflect 15% equity retained by Bouygues until 2015
On closer inspection, however, it would seem that And of course there are several opportunities on Viewpoint from Jonathan Dann, Managing
FPS EBITDA multiple can be interpreted several the horizon which could prove very attractive Director, RBC
ways, and that a substantial amount of capital indeed, including the Bouygues rooftops in
expenditure will need to be made over the next three France, Arqiva in the UK, Telxius in Spain and How does this compare to earlier (European)
years to support FPS rapid growth plans. As some Germany, Global Tower in Turkey, Ukraine and deals?
sources suggest that FPS EBITDA may be closer to Cyprus and Deutsche Funkturm in Germany.
36mn, this would imply a multiple of 20.5x, which With some extremely significant portfolios in the Recently, European tower portfolios have changed
is substantially above the regional average. pipeline, it would seem sensible for Cellnex to hands at 15-17x EV/EBITDA; however, these have
keep their powder dry for the time being. been low growth and hence low capex/sales assets,
As Cellnexs leverage is approaching their target implying <20x EV/OFCF (EBITDA-capex) for CPI type
level, an investment in FPS, which is likely to be growth rates.
ATC Europe, on the other hand, has access to
EBITDA-capex negative for the next three years,
cheap capital and a partner in PGGM who is
would have left them with very little wiggle room FPS is in a class of its own, it is expected to have
eager to invest in long term growth. The FPS
should a larger opportunity arise. As Jonathan a substantial capex program designed to grow its
acquisition fits nicely into their European customer base (occupied towers) materially by 2020
Dann, Managing Director at RBC states: Current
forecasts for FPS are that annual FCF contribution narrative of stable cash flows from mature with revenues and EBITDA growing by multiples -
from France would have been negative for Cellnex Northern European markets, and a good return i.e. the buyer is paying <10x EV/EBITDA in 2020, but
if it was the acquirer, before becoming a substantial on investment story could play out in France current FCF is negative.
contributor beyond 2020. This would have severely with a much admired asset, which cements
reduced Cellnexs ability to invest over the next two/ American Tower as a European player to be For FPS, American Tower represent a vastly
three years. reckoned with experienced counterparty with access to the
expertise and cheap capital they need to realise their management team, a group of smart and creative with long-term tenant lease contracts, a high
rapid growth plans. ATCs operations in Germany professionals who made no secret of the fact theyd quality asset base from a structural and location
and joint venture with PGGM show they know the been to the US, seen how successful the model was perspective, and excellent relationships with the
European market well and are committed to growth and emulated it in the European market. Its no mobile network operators.
in the region - something which sets them apart from wonder the asset appealed to US buyers, who found
other US towercos, who have expressed an interest the playbook accessible and easy to read. We believe we have an excellent opportunity
in European assets for some time, but as yet have not to combine ATCs proven expertise in owning,
dipped their toes in the water. Cellnexs unchallenged sweep across Europe has operating and investing in telecommunications
come to an end; American Tower has stepped assets with FPS deep knowledge of the local market
What does this mean for European towers? up to the plate and swung for the fences, but the and PGGMs financial support to continue to grow
great news is that serious competition to build a this business in France over the long term. The
If we had doubts about American Towers intentions pan-continental portfolio will boost value for both valuation for the asset in light of all of these factors
towards the European market before, theyre allayed smaller towercos and MNOs who have been biding was attractive.
now. With this acquisition, American Tower is laying their time and deciding whether to divest their
the foundation for a strong European portfolio and assets. Europes tower market shows no signs of TowerXchange: Does this deal exemplify a
presenting a clear challenge to both Cellnex and slowing in 2017 slightly different investment criteria for ATC in
other international towercos with an eye on the partnership with PGGM in Europe?
European market: American Tower mean business. Exclusive comment from American Tower
In a European market with 45 towercos and just 13% American Tower: No, we are utilizing the same
of European towers in independent hands, there TowerXchange: Why France, why FPS, and why investment evaluation process that we have used for
remains huge scope for consolidation, acquisition now? years, with the same risk-adjusted hurdle rates. In
and asset transfer. addition, the transaction extends our partnership
American Tower: This was an attractive acquisition with PGGM and demonstrates the joint ventures
The transaction is a good news story for European for us for a number of reasons. France is a wireless ability to find, evaluate and acquire what we believe
towers. Irrespective of which EBITDA number market with less 4G coverage than many other will be high-growth assets in Europe by combining
you believe, what it boils down to is the fact that European marketsjust 25%. Because the regulator PGGMs deep knowledge of the continent with ATCs
Antin put 205mn on the table just under five has mandated that all mobile network operators extensive history of acquiring and operating tower
years ago, and turned it into almost 700mn by reach 98% 4G coverage by 2024, we believe this will assets globally.
reading the market and empowering a savvy help catalyze network investments going forward.
and entrepreneurial team. That team added Coupled with the recent 700 MHz spectrum auction TowerXchange: While the core assets in the FPS
value by leasing up the towers, such that value and significantly growing mobile data usage, we portfolio were 2,400 macro sites, the company
per tower increased over 250% in less than five expect considerable growth in revenues on the FPS are renowned for their interest in exploiting
years, from 111,346 to 280,821, an impressive tower assets. alternate site typologies, from rooftops to
return on investment which speaks volumes electricity transmission towers - do you see these
about the investibility of European towers right Furthermore, FPS has been a very well managed alternate site typologies remaining part of the
now. The achievement is also testament to the FPS independent tower operator since its inception, vision going forward?
American Tower: This was another part of the appeal
of the transaction, in addition to the high quality
nature of the tower portfolio. The FPS management See you at our future events!
team has done an excellent job of unlocking value
in the French telecommunications real estate space,
and part of that has been, and we believe will
continue to be, offerings that are complementary to
the core tower business. Meetup Meet up
We expect to continue evaluating these types of
alternative technologies and pursue them to the
Europe 2017 Americas 2017
extent they offer compelling returns that meet
our requirements as part of our overall value 4-5 April, 7-8 June,
proposition to our French carrier customers.
London Boca Raton
TowerXchange: Does American Tower, in
partnership with PGGM, have appetite for further
acquisitions in Europe?
American Tower: Yes, we welcome the opportunity

to build on our partnership with PGGM and Meetup Africa Meetup Asia
will continue to evaluate additional investment
opportunities in Europe and around the world,
utilizing our proven investment evaluation
& ME 2017 2017
methodology and acting only if the opportunities
meet our risk-adjusted return hurdle requirements
3-4 October, 12-13 December,
FPS Towers Chairman Frederic Zimer will be
Johannesburg Singapore
joining Cellnex, INWIT, WIG, CTIL and Russian
Towers on the CXO panel at the TowerXchange
Meetup Europe on 4-5 April 2017 at the Business
Design Centre, London. Visit
www.towerxchange.com/meetup/meetup-europe/ www.towerxchange.com
for more information.
TowerXchange deal analysis: Why the deal made sense for Cellnex: synergies,
scale and a platform to push into Northern and
Cellnex acquires 261 Dutch towers

Central Europe
Boosted with a substantial M&A warchest from

from Protelindo for 109mn their successful IPO, Cellnex currently owns 15,120
towers in Southern Europe (Spain and Italy),
Cellnex consolidates their position as Europes only pan-European towerco of scale, but their acquisition of 261 Dutch towers from
Protelindo realises a 45% increase in valuation Protelindo was the first transaction in Northern
and Central Europe as the company seeks to fulfill
their pan-European growth vision.
Cellnex has acquired 100% of the share capital in Protelindos 261
tower Dutch business for 109mn (EV on a cash, debt-free basis). The
From the very beginning Cellnexs project is to
valuation is in the 15-16x range, based on an expected EBITDA of 8mn
build a true European player, consolidating the
in 2017, generating recurrent free cash flow at a 90% ratio. The deal
business model of independent telco infrastructure
is expected to close within two months, subject to the usual CPs. The
operators, Cellnex CEO Tobias Martinez told
transaction through existing credit facilities. Here, TowerXchange
TowerXchange. In this kind of network business
analyses the deal and shares some exclusive quotes from Cellnex CEO
size matters. Our focus on European markets will
Tobias Martinez.
provide us the right scope and presence to better
serve our customers.
Keywords: 4G, Business Case, Cellnex, DAS, Decommissioning, Europe,
Europe News, Europe Research, Exit Strategy, Infrastructure Sharing, KPN,
Martinez continued: So the Dutch market fits
LTE, Liberty Global, Market Overview, News, Novec, Open Tower Company,
within our strategic framework: a mature market
Protelindo, Rooftop, Sheere Group, Small Cells, T-Mobile, Tele2, Tenancy
with potential synergy creation opportunities; a
Ratios, The Netherlands, Tower Count, TowerXchange Research, Towerco
By Kieron Osmotherly, CEO,
Consolidation, Towercos, Valuation, Vodafone, Wireless Infrastructure Group
platform to get familiar with markets closer to
TowerXchange
central and northern Europe as well as the UK; not
to say predictability, rule of law as well as stability.
Moreover The Netherlands is a market with a
Read this article to learn:
solid footprint of independent towercos, and as a
< Why Cellnex chose to invest in the Dutch tower market
stand alone market offers opportunities to further
< Why the sale made sense for Protelindo consolidate due to overlapping networks, and with
< What Cellnex is buying the expected infrastructure densification through
< Who owns the towers in The Netherlands, and the proportion of GBTs compared to other PoSs small cells and DAS deployment. Infrastructure
< Opportunities in small cells and DAS in The Netherlands markets tend to be opportunity driven and if
yours is a growth strategy then you have to have
heads up and be aware where those opportunities History of tower transactions in The Netherlands
emerge as it has been the case with Protelindo in
Netherlands, concluded Martinez. Tower Deal value Cost per
Year Seller Buyer
count mns tower
Why the deal made sense for Protelindo: a 45%
increase in valuation in four years 2016 Arcus/Shere Group Cellnex 464 182* 392,241*
2016 Protelindo Cellnex 261 109 417,625

Protelindo had acquired these 261 Dutch towers for
75mn in a sale and leaseback with KPN in 2012.
2012 KPN Protelindo 261 75 287,356
Having financed that acquisition with cash and low 2012 KPN Shere Group 460 115 250,000
cost debt, the acquisition paid for itself in a year, so
2010 KPN Open Tower Company 500 Undisclosed
an exit at a 34mn premium represents a very nice
piece of business for Protelindo, particularly since 2008 KPN Open Tower Company 101 Undisclosed
one of the primary motivations for their acquisition
*Figures based on 464 towers from a total of 1004 in both the UK and The Netherlands sold at 393mn Source: TowerXchange

of assets in The Netherlands was taxation and, with company to focus on their Indonesian business.
a tax treaty now in place between the Netherlands
and Indonesia, the company no longer needed to What Cellnex is buying, and how the portfolio
retain the assets. fits into the Dutch tower market
Protelindos 21% increase in Protelindo grew the revenue of their Dutch The 261 towers Cellnex are buying from Protelindo
business from 7mn to 8.5mn between 2012 and are dispersed across The Netherlands, with 80%
revenue yielded a 45% increase
2016. Protelindos 21% increase in revenue yielded strategically located along transit corridors and
in valuation, reflecting not just a 45% increase in valuation, reflecting not just the the balance in urban and rural areas. The current
the value added through lease exponential value added through lease up, but tenancy ratio is 1.88, with 75% of revenues linked
the background levels of increased interest and to contracts extending until 2028. Protelindo
up, but the background levels of valuation ascribed to telecom towers as an asset operates a lean business model in The Netherlands,
increased interest and valuation
ascribed to telecom towers as
an asset class
class.
Protelindo Netherlands BV is a subsidiary of PT

Sarana Menara Nusantara, which owns 14,476
towers in Indonesia, and which traces its roots
with O&M outsourced, so the acquisition is not
likely to add significant SG&A to Cellnexs balance
sheet.
When closed, Cellnex will own 8.6% of the towers

back to Michael Gearon, one of the forefathers of in The Netherlands, where 1,721 (57%) of the
American Towers presence in Latin America. The countrys 3,021 ground based towers are already
sale of Protelindos Dutch assets will enable the owned by towercos. While KPN has sold their
Estimated ground based tower ownership in The Netherlands Infrastructure Group (WIG), which recently secured
a significant minority investment from 3i. Both
Sheere Group and WIG also have substantial UK
tower portfolios.
650 43% of Dutch telecom towers remain MNO-captive,

860 and TowerXchange are not aware of any near term
prospect of sale and leasebacks in the country. There
Novec / Open Tower Company is some bi-lateral sharing of towers between MNOs
Shere Group / Protelindo / Cellnex in the Netherlands on a non-commercial basis but,
having sold their towers, KPN no longer participates.
Other towercos (inc WIG)
Vodafone (now a joint venture with Liberty Global)
Vodafone/Liberty Global has around 600 towers, while T-Mobile has around
600 650 towers. None of Vodafone, Liberty and T-Mobile
T-Mobile
has a history of monetising their towers. Tele2
recently launched an exclusively 4G network in the
721
Netherlands, but sold most of the few towers they
200 own. Tele2 are likely to rely heavily on co-location
and on a RANsharing deal with T-Mobile.
The fact that existing MNOs in the market may
towers, neither Vodafone nor T-Mobile has a TenneT Holding BV is the sole shareholder, Open deploy their own equipment beyond their current
track record of selling towers, but there may be Tower Company owns the assets, and Novec runs RAN sharing agreements can support further growth
opportunities for Cellnex to drive their market the business. opportunities from an organic perspective. MNOs
share in The Netherlands through the consolidation divestment or unbundling of their existing passive
of Novec/Open Tower Company. Other tower company in The Netherlands is infrastructure is always a potential scenario, said
Wood Creek Capital Managements Wireless Cellnexs Martinez.
Cellnex will compete with Dutch market leader Infrastructure Group (WIG), which recently secured
Novec, which was spun out of broadcast towerco a significant minority investment from 3i. Like A significant majority of towers in The Netherlands
Nozema in 2005 and which scaled through organic Shere Group, WIG has a substantial UK tower are fibreised. Only 20% of The Netherlands 15,204
and inorganic growth to todays portfolio of around portfolio. cell sites are macro cell sites, with the balance being
850 towers. Novec added 101 towers when KPN rooftops, DAS and small cells.
bought Telfort, then added three of five batches Other tower companies in The Netherlands include
of towers subsequently sold by KPN. Novec also Arcus Infrastructure Partners Sheere Group, Investment in macro towers is minimal in this
has access to over 1,000 electricity network sites. and Wood Creek Capital Managements Wireless mature market: a low double digit count of new
aggregators kicking the tyres on the Dutch market,
Spectrum in The Netherlands but nothing of significant scale.
Current status What next for Cellnex?
800MHz Tele2 VOD KPN TowerXchange asked Martinez to share Cellnexs

2*30
(Paired) 2*10 2*10 2*10 vision for expansion in the region.
900MHz VOD KPN T-Mob
2*35
(Paired) 2*10 2*10 2*15 There are no specific targets in quantitative terms
beyond the fact that we aim to become a European
1.8GHz KPN VOD T-Mob
2*70 player as we already are in fact. Again a key driver
(Paired) 2*20 2*20 2*30
for growth are opportunities and those arise
1.9GHz T-Mob KPN VOD T-Mob
1*35 where there is an MNO willing to divest its assets
(Unpaired) 10 5 5.4 14.6
or an existing towerco whose shareholders would
2.1GHz VOD KPN T-Mob KPN VOD T-Mob like to sell or become part of a wider international
2*59.4
(Paired) 2*14.6 2*14.8 2*10 2*5 2*5 2*10
project. This is what frames our approach together
2.6GHz T-Mob KPN Tele2 with customary analysis regarding market
1*60
(Unpaired) 25 30 5 specifics like stand alone growth potential, size,
VOD Ziggo4 T-Mob KPN Tele2 competitors, space for rationalisation, market
2.6GHz 2*65
(Paired) 2*10 2*20 2*5 2*10 2*20 stability and predictability, concluded Cellnexs
Martinez.
KPN VOD T-Mob Tele2 Ziggo4
Total 613.8MHz
174.6MHz 144.6MHz 189.6MHz 65MHz 40MHz
TowerXchange conclusions
Source: KPN
towers is erected in a typical year, with Novec that network densification to ensure a smooth and The Netherlands is a mid-sized Northern
seemingly getting the majority of the BTS work. wide penetration of LTE technologies will be a core36 European tower market characterised by a culture
With 4G coverage ranging from 92-99% having part of the business in the upcoming years and in of infrastructure sharing, and steady growth.
been deployed primarily on existing 2G and 3G every market, commented Martinez. Operational and country risk is low. This creates
infrastructure, Cellnex anticipates opportunities a justifiably high valuation of telecom towers
in small cells and DAS. This is a structural change There hasnt been much decommissioning to date as pensionable assets robust infrastructure
that will drive every single market in which in The Netherlands, and what there has been has with long term contracts, generating predictable
mobile broadband becomes a priority. Small cells, been driven by optimising land lease costs rather returns from credit-worthy customers.
indoor as well as outdoor, and DAS too is a kind of than driven by consolidation.
next frontier which is close to hatching. It is clear There have been some reports of ground lease Martinez and his team are well on the way
If you missed Tobias Martinezs keynote, and
Protelindos roundtable on how to scale a
towerco, at the last TowerXchange Meetup
Europe, dont miss the 2nd annual TowerXchange
Meetup Europe, taking place on 4-5 April 2017 at
the Business Design Centre, London. For more
details, visit:
www.towerxchange.com/meetup/meetup-europe
Cellnex admitted to prestigious IBEX

35 benchmark index
Cellnex Telecom (CLNX:SM) will been included

in the IBEX 35 benchmark index of Spains
stock exchange on 20 June 2016.
Since its debut on the Spanish stock exchange

on 7 May 2015, Cellnex Telecom has
maintained its initial pricing in the 14 range,
accumulating a positive differential against the
IBEX 35 of 22%. Cellnexs current market cap is
3.3bn. The reference shareholders of Cellnex
Telecom include Abertis (34%), Columbia
Threadneedle (7.8%), BlackRock (6.2%),
CriteriaCaixa (4.62%), and Cantillon Capital
Management (3%), leaving the companys free
Cellnex towers in Europe as of February 2017:
float at 43%.
UK: 740, Netherlands: 725, France: 3,500, Spain: 7,413, Italy: 8,757
to fulfilling a vision of creating the first pan- motivated partly by taxation, a venture which The incorporation into the IBEX 35 index will
European towerco of scale. This deal also seldom caused them any operational problems, and raise the visibility of Cellnex Telecoms shares
represents tremendous return on capital invested which in four years turned 75mn into 109mn. and highlight the companys growth plan
by Protelindo from a European venture initially European towers: nice work if you can get it!
A global view on tower investing How to value towers across different
geographies?Enter the single tower model
A high level buyers guide from New Street Research As the public tower sector has expanded globally, we
needed a framework to compare tower investment
There are three primary ways to invest in towers: opportunities across markets (not all towers are
invest in one of the public tower companies, invest created equally). The return that a tower can offer is
in wireless carriers who might ultimately sell primarily a function of two things: the colocation rate
or spin-out their tower portfolio, or buy towers and tower economics. Subtle differences in either of
directly. Among the public tower companies, these can drastically impact the value of a tower.
we see the best opportunities in the US (AMT
and SBAC), Mexico (Telesites), and Indonesia New Street Research built a Single Tower Model
(Protelindo and TBIG). We think these will be great to compare the colocation growth, economics, and
returns of towers across geographies. We analysed
companies to own for a long time; however, there
data consumption trends, base station density,
may be more upside to wireless carriers that have
smartphone penetration, and concentration of
yet to monetise their towers, particularly in China
carriers to estimate colocation growth. We then
(China Unicom), Indonesia (Indosat), and India analysed differences in leasing rates, escalators,
(Reliance). Within the private market, we see the pass-through expenses, and construction costs to
greatest returns to building towers in Indonesia, compare tower economics. Finally, we factored in
By Spencer Kurn, Founding Partner, New Street Research followed closely by Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. country and regulatory risk to build a ranking system
of risk-adjusted tower returns. Our model suggests
Keywords: Africa, Americas, Asia, Bangladesh, Bankability, Brazil, Business Model, Central America, Chile, that Indonesia is the most attractive market, followed
China, Co-locations, Colombia, Country Risk, Deal Structure, Debt Finance, Europe, Fixed Price, Germany, closely by Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. See exhibit one.
Ghana, India, Indonesia, Investment, Investors, Italy, Lawyers & Advisors, Lease Rates, Market Forecasts,
Market Overview, Mexico, Multi-Region, Myanmar, New Street Research, Nigeria, Pass-Through, Peru, Colocation growth is highest in emerging markets
Project Finance, Regulation, Research, Sale & Leaseback, South Africa, Spain, Tax, Tenancy Ratios, Thailand,
Third Party Reports, Turkey, USA, Uganda, Valuation The best markets tend to be characterised by high
colocation rates, with strong demand for base
stations and limits on the supply of towers. There is a
Read this article to learn: clearer trend of higher network density in developed
< New Street Researchs global tower market rankings by tower returns markets, where data consumption per sub is high,
< How New Street Research compare tower valuations across different geographies than in emerging markets, where data consumption
< Contrasting tower and colocation growth in developed and emerging markets and smartphone penetration lags by a wide margin.
< Contrasting market rents, escalators and cost structures
Most developed countries (where usage per sub is
higher) have a ratio of total subscriber per base Exhibit one: New Street Research single tower model details
station of less than 1,000, whereas most emerging
countries have a ratio above 2,000. Over time we
would expect data consumption to converge across
most markets and drive similar base station density;
the bigger driver of differences in colocation rates
will be the number of carriers in a market and
the factors that drive tower supply. In emerging
markets, we expect growth of 0.13-0.20x tenants per
tower annually, increasing tenancy ratios by a CAGR
of 10-15% over the next 10 years. In developed
markets, we expect slower colocation growth of 0.05-
0.10x, increasing tenancy ratios by a CAGR of 5-10%.
See exhibits two and three.
A market with three to four carriers is the sweet

spot for colocation
A healthy and competitive MNO market ensures

that tower companies have pricing power to capture
amendment and colocation activity on towers
effectively. Additionally, a stable MNO market
generally results in lower company credit risk,
Source: New Street Research, Company data 2015
improving the security on cash.
cover their fixed costs and have the potential to companies selling their towers. This is particularly
In markets where there are too many carriers, such consolidate or underinvest in their networks. the case in markets where the selling telecom
as India, there is a high threat of consolidation, company retains ownership in or control of the
which could negatively impact colocation rates or High colocation growth doesnt mean anything if tower operator. The difference in market origins are
dampen colocation growth. Additionally, markets you cant capture the economics reflected in higher lease rates, better monetisation
with very uneven distribution of market share can of new equipment on towers, and higher colocation
pose problems for two reasons: Tower economics vary greatly across markets. In rates in markets that developed independently.
general terms, markets that developed through the
1) the dominant carrier tends to have higher creation of independent tower companies tend to Market rents and escalators vary by region
purchasing power and less of an incentive to invest; have more profitable financials models and have
and more favorable regulatory dynamics than those New tenant leases differ significantly across regions
2) the smallest carriers typically struggle to that have been created primarily through telecom and so do the rates at which they grow. In general,
starting rents (excluding pass-through expenses) Exhibit two: New Street Research estimated base station density by market
tend to be highest in the USA, Europe, and Africa POPs per base station Source: New Street Research, Company data 2015
and escalators tend to be highest in markets with
high inflation.
Escalators in the US and India are fixed (usually

between 2-4%). In some markets, such as Ghana
and Nigeria, it is common for a portion of the tenant
lease to be denominated in USD and escalated at a
fixed rate of 3-4%. Indonesia is mostly fixed with a
0% escalator, with a portion of their rent (20-30%)
escalating at CPI. Escalators in most other markets
are linked to CPI.
Cost structures vary dramatically by region
The main costs for tower companies are land

rent, energy, and other operating expenses such
as insurance, property tax, security and lighting.
Across the global landscape, the tower operator
Exhibit three: New Street Research estimated growth in towers and
either bears all of these costs or passes through colocations by market
some of these costs to the tenant. For example, in
the US and parts of Europe, the tower company
bears all expenses but complexity is minimal due
to the reliability of the electricity grid. In LatAm,
land costs are typically passed through but the
business model remains similar. But in Africa and
Asia, many towercos operate the power solutions at
cell sites, with variable fuel costs sometimes passed
through, sometimes fixed as part of a power-as-a-
service proposition. This significantly increases the
complexity of the business model and exposes the
towerco to greater volatility in their cost structures.
This has huge implications for tower cash flow

margins; markets with greater pass-through Source: New Street Research, Company data 2015
Exhibit four: New Street Research estimated day one Tower Cash Flow yields expenses are much more profitable.
%, excluding pass-through expenses
Construction costs are highest in developed
countries
Construction costs also differ across geographies,

with the US the most expensive (~US$250k/tower),
and India the least expensive (~US$40k/tower).
Costs are dependent on tower size and quality, local

cost of steel, land value (if purchased rather than
rented), energy and fuel capex, and labor costs. Based
on our assumptions for tower cash flow and capex
requirements, we estimate towers in Indonesia and
Thailand generate the highest initial cash flow yields
across the global landscape. See exhibit four.
Source: New Street Research, Company data 2015
Tax, finance and regulatory considerations
Exhibit five: New Street Research global market ranking by tower returns
%, IRR less WACC We view the US as the most attractive regulatory
market for tower companies, with REIT structures
that allow for low taxes without many restrictions,
and policies that encourage the development of
towers. Other markets either do not have REIT
structures which tower companies can utilise, or
have REIT structures that do not offer the same tax
benefits as those in the US. Korea is an example of
a weak REIT environment, with Lotte Shopping Co.
choosing to list in Singapore to avoid high acquisition
taxes and continued payment of corporate taxes. The
one exception outside the US is DIF in Thailand,
which operates as an infrastructure fund with similar
tax exemptions.
Finally, the cost of capital has a significant impact

Source: New Street Research, Company data 2015 on the returns of a tower. Across the countries we
analysed, ~60% of the value comes from the terminal
value, on average, which is very sensitive to the
cost of capital. We see the highest costs of capital in
Africa and Asia, followed by LatAm, then the US and
Europe with the lowest costs of capital.
Putting it all together
Based on our assumptions for colocation rates and

tower economics in each market, we believe tower
investors can earn the greatest returns in Indonesia,
followed by a host of other South American
countries, then Turkey and the USA.
Despite the high top line growth rates in African

markets, we do not believe they offer more
compelling returns due to the high costs of
capital and geopolitical risks associated with the
countries. We see Europe and China as the least
compelling, due in large part to having the slowest
revenue growth across the markets we analysed. See
exhibit five
Your guest columnist, Spencer Kurn Visit the TowerXchange.com website

Spencer Kurn is a founding partner of New
< Access to the Internet of People in the global tower < A comprehensive archive of TowerXchanges
Street Research, LLC, and heads tower company
industry a trust web of over 35,000 decision makers interviews and analyses, searchable by topic, country,
research for the organisation. Prior to starting company or grouped by category (e.g. interviews or
in telecom and broadcast infrastructure
New Street in 2012, Spencer was a member of the how to guides)
Telecom Services Equity Research Team at Credit < Independent analysis and commentaries on the
Suisse. Prior to joining Credit Suisse, Spencer was prospects for tower transactions in selected countries < The latest news and registration information about
a generalist investor on the International Equity TowerXchanges Meetups.
Research team at Putnam Investments. Spencer < The latest industry emerging market tower industry
holds a B.A in Economics from the University of
Pennsylvania
TowerXchange market
The current state of the tower markets in the
Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia
studies: Ukraine, Kazakhstan, VimpelCom is reportedly seeking to monetise towers

in four diverse countries with a total population
Armenia and Georgia comparable to the United Kingdom. Demographics

are generally similar across the four countries, with
the exception of Kazakhstan, which is less densely
A closer look at market dynamics in Central Asia as VimpelComs
populated yet generally wealthier. The Kazakh and
towers come to market Ukrainian towers may prove more attractive as a
function of market size and of the strength of the
Teasers are reportedly out for the sale of 12,400 VimpelCom local VimpelCom opco anchor tenant.
towers in Central Asia, with TAP Advisors believed to be
running the process. With 4G only rolled out to half the The absence of a strong existing culture of
population in Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia, and with infrastructure sharing, with only one towerco
the Ukraine still lagging in 3G rollout, demand for data will of scale across the four countries (UkrTOWER),
soar and demand for points of service in these markets could means any acquiring towerco would have to win
double in the next ten years. And with few existing towercos hearts and minds of network planners, but would
in the region, VimpelComs process could inaugurate a new also have the opportunity to set market lease
era of shared infrastructure in Eurasia. rates, subject to the usual constraints that MNOs
may build rather than lease towers if the price is
Keywords: 3G, 4G, American Tower, Anchor Tenant, Armenia, Batteries, Best of TowerXchange, Cellnex, Central
prohibitive.
Asia, Co-locations, Decommissioning, Densification, Digital Bridge, Eurasia Tower, Europe, Fixed Price, Georgia,
Global Tower, Infrastructure Sharing, Kazakhstan, LTE, Lease Rates, MNOs, Market Overview, Masts & Towers,
The immaturity of mobile broadband rollouts offers
Network Rollout, On-Grid, Pass-Through, Research, Rooftop, Russia & CIS, Russian Towers, Sale & Leaseback, TAP
a long runway for growth for interested towercos,
Advisors, Telemont, Tenancy Ratios, Tower Count, TowerXchange Research, Towercos, Ukraine, Vertical, VimpelCom
with 4G population coverage around 50%, except in
the Ukraine where there is no 4G and only around
Read this article to learn: 40% of the population has 3G.
< The scale and structure of the tower markets in the Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia
< Usage of alternate site typologies: GBTs, RTTs and other structures Ukraine
< The rate at which new towers are being added
< The degree of infrastructure sharing to date Political instability stymied network investment in
the Ukraine, where in a normal year around 750
< The status of 3G and 4G spectrum and rollout
new points of service (PoS) would be added. But the
< Cell site energy in Central Asia
country is emerging from recession, and more than
Est total Population Mobile subs Mobile Subs / Land area Land area / GDP per capita
Country Urbanisation
sites mns mns penetration site sqkm site (US$PPP)
Ukraine 21,600 44.21 60.72 137% 2,811 579,330 26.8 69.7% $8,200
Kazakhstan 15,400 18.36 31.39 173% 2,038 2,669,700 173.4 53.2% $25,700
Georgia 3,000 4.93 5.55 113% 1,850 69,700 23.2 53.6% $10,100
Armenia 2,200 3.05 3.44 113% 1,564 28,203 12.8 62.7% $8,900
Source: CIA Factbook, TowerXchange
Estimated count of owned towers and rooftops: Ukraine 3-5% of towers and rooftops in the Ukraine are
shared, mostly at nominal prices or under barter
1,000 arrangements.
1,201
A further 1,000+ leased third party structures, such
2,000 Kyivstar (VimpelCom) as smoke stacks and water towers, are utilised by
7,400 Ukraines MNOs, while the core site count includes
Vodafone (MTS)
around 60% ground based towers, 40% rooftops,
lifecell (Turkcell) bringing the total unique site count (excluding co-
locations) to around 21,600.
4,000 TriMob / UkrTelecom
UkrTOWER The Ukraine is one of the last countries in Europe
where MNOs have not yet been granted spectrum
Other third party sites for LTE indeed 3G is accessible to only around
6,000 40% of the population (expected to rise to 60% by
year end 2017), partly as a result of an exclusivity
arrangement held by TriMob until 2016.
2,500 new PoS could be added to MNO networks completes the landscape.
before the end of this decade. Kazakhstan
Last year Turkcell carved out and transferred 811
VimpelComs Kyivstar is the market leader in a four lifecell towers to UkrTOWER, the local subsidiary Kazakhstan is also emerging from recession,
MNO market. Kyivstars primary competition comes of their captive towerco Global Tower. UkrTOWERs compounded by high inflation that is now falling.
from an MTS subsidiary, which trades under the current site count is 1,201, including a number of Oil wealth drives GDP per capita significantly higher
Vodafone brand, and Turkcells lifecell. TriMob, the in building solutions, and the company boasts a than the other three countries in the VimpelCom
mobile brand of fixed line incumbent UkrTelecom, healthy tenancy ratio. Outside of UkrTOWER, only process.
Estimated tower market sizes (including towers and rooftops) The MNO market in Kazakhstan consolidated from
four to three with the merger of Altel and Tele2.
The merger has been legally approved, but network
integration has only just commenced. Finturs Kcell
remains market leader, with VimpelComs Kar-Tel a
close second.
Altel had a 4G monopoly until Summer

2016, after which date VimpelCom and Kcell
Armenia Georgia Kazakhstan Ukraine commenced a shared 4G rollout. This partnership
2,200 3,000 15,400 21,600 notwithstanding, only a very small proportion of
Kazakhstans existing towers are shared: less than
5%.
600-1,000 PoS are added per year in Kazakhstan,

and the need for urban densification and rural
coverage, compounded by coverage obligations
that came with 4G spectrum, could see total PoS in
the country double in the next ten years. However,
additions may be offset somewhat in 2017 by
Estimated count of owned towers and rooftops: Kazakhstan decommissioning of duplicate locations in the Altel-
Tele2 networks.
1,500
The dispersed population and scale of Kazakhstan,
700 3,500 at 2.7mn sqkm, makes economic rural coverage a
Kar-Tel (VimpelCom) challenge, so third party structures play an even
Kcell (Fintur) greater role in Kazakhstans mobile networks than
in the Ukraine. In particular fixed line incumbent
Altel+Tele2 Kazakhtelecom has around 700 sites which are
4,200 leased up to MNOs at a low lease rate. Estimates
Kazakhtelecom suggest these sites could have a tenancy ratio as
Other third party sites high as 2.5. The only formal towerco TowerXchange
5,500 has identified in the country is Logycom, which has
secured a build to suit contract for one of the MNOs,
while we have heard reports of small portfolios
Source: TowerXchange (~10) of privately owned sites. Alongside the usual
assortment of water towers, smoke stacks and Spectrum holdings in Georgia and Armenia were Potential bidders
oil industry structures, MNOs also co-locate on a quite asymmetrical until 2016, when all MNOs
number of Kazteleradios broadcast towers. were granted 4G spectrum, without however While we wouldnt rule them out entirely,
fully aligning the holdings between the MNOs. TowerXchange doubt Europes largest independent
TowerXchange have never encountered such a The effect is more pronounced in Armenia where towerco Cellnex will bid aggressively for these
wide deviation between suggested site counts locally owned Ucom (formerly Orange Armenia VimpelCom towers. Cellnex has history with
from multiple sources on a market, so there is a and now vying with Beeline for the #2 position) VimpelCom, having acquired towerco Galata from
significant margin for error in our site counts. has a lot more spectrum than either market VimpelComs Italian subsidiary Wind, but Central
While all parties agree VimpelCom has around leader MTS or Beeline. In Georgia, market leader Asia seems a little exotic for a towerco with an
3,500 sites, around 60% of which are rooftops and MagtiCom has the largest spectrum holdings. investment thesis focused on Western Europe.
40% ground based towers, our best estimate is that LTE rollout is well under way, with population
Kcell owns around 5,500 towers and rooftops, with
coverage around 50% in both countries, and 3G at In addition to the usual assortment of infrastructure
Altel and Tele2 combining a total of around 4,200
70-80%. and pension funds, who are the more likely towerco
towers and rooftops. Third party structures make
bidders for VimpelComs Central Asian towers? In
up around 30% of Kazakhstans mobile networks,
There is very little existing infrastructure sharing alphabetical order
and total at least 1,500, perhaps significantly more.
in either country. The only towerco TowerXchange
has heard of operating in these countries is GIS, American Tower: Since forming a joint venture
Georgia and Armenia
but requests for information from the owner have with PGGM, American Tower has renewed appetite
been ignored. We suspect its very small. for European towers, having recently announced
The smaller Georgian and Armenian tower markets
the 697mn acquisition of FPS Towers in France
consist of around 3,000 and 2,200 sites respectively.
Power which will bring their European tower and
Around 65% of sites are rooftops, but less alternate
site typologies are used than in Kazakhstan: just rooftop count to around 5,000. American Tower
a handful of broadcast tower co-locations. The VimpelCom are reportedly open to selling cell has unfulfilled aspirations to expand into Eastern
VimpelCom tower divestiture is believed to include site energy assets (batteries, DGs, DC power and Europe and may take a look at the VimpelCom
around 800 sites in Georgia, 650 in Armenia. air conditioning systems) as well as their towers towers.
and rooftops. If the energy equipment is sold, the
Both countries host three MNOs: Magticom structure of the contract, as a straight power pass Digital Bridge: The latest venture from Marc Ganzi
(privately owned) has over 40% market share in through or with a chance for the towerco to make and Ben Jenkins, the brains behind Global Tower
Georgia, followed by Geocell (Fintur) and Beeline a margin, may be at the discretion of the investor. Partners which was sold to American Tower for
(VimpelCom); while VimpelCom, again trading as US$4.8bn in 2013, Digital Bridge has built up a
Beeline, is #2 in the Armenian market, joined by Almost all sites in the Ukraine, and over 80% of portfolio of around 6,000 towers across subsidiaries
VivaCell (MTS) and Ucom. VimpelCom entered the sites in Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia, are in North and South America, with an appetite to
Armenian market by acquiring the former State on reliable electricity grid connections, although expand into EMEA and beyond.
monopoly fixed line operator, so they have several a few sites are powered by the landlord or other
strategically important rooftop locations. third party. Eurasia Tower: Construction firm with experience

of building over 5,000 towers and rooftops in
Central Asia, seeking to move up the value chain to
acquire and retain towers.
Global Tower: Turkcell stepped back from an

IPO of their towerco subsidiary Global Tower, While a buyer would have to foster a culture of infrastructure
and may seek third party investment to finance
expansion into Central Asia. Global Tower currently
owns and operates 8,067 towers and rooftops in
Turkey, 1,201 in the Ukraine through subsidiary
sharing in the region, the healthy tenancy ratios of UkrTOWER and
Kazakhtelecom sites bode well for lease up potential of sites currently
with tenancy ratios very close to one

UkrTOWER, 828 in Belarus and 115 in the Turkish
Republic of Northern Cyprus. Turkcell have been in
discussions with TeliaSonera, who may wish to exit
their Fintur joint venture, which could precipitate
Telemont: Dark horses in the race, Telemont is sharing of towers and rooftops, driving tenancy ratio
availability of further Central Asian towers. While
another tower construction firm rumoured to have growth with overlays by MNOs and incremental
the geographical fit between where Global Tower
appetite to move up the value chain to acquire and tenancies from the usual array of non-traditional
would like to expand and where VimpelCom
own towers. MNO tenants. While a buyer would have to foster
would like to sell is perfect, the politics of a tower
a culture of infrastructure sharing in the region,
transaction ostensibly between two MNOs would be
Vertical: One of the fastest growing towercos in the the healthy tenancy ratios of UkrTOWER and
challenging, if not insurmountable.
world, Vertical came seemingly from nowhere to Kazakhtelecom sites bode well for lease up potential
become a serious contender in the Russian tower of sites currently with tenancy ratios very close to
Russian Towers: Russias leading towerco, with
processes. Vertical acquired and refurbished over one.
over 2,000 towers, is believed to be in the final
500 sites and added a number of microsites, lamp
stages of acquiring 10,400 towers from VimpelCom While some prospective investors may balk at
post solutions and rural towers, bringing their site
in their home country. While Russian Towers have count to 1,600 when TowerXchange last checked in perceived country and counterparty risk in Central
an appetite to expand into neighbouring countries with them. Asia, economic improvements and the prospect of
in the region, it remains to be seen whether they securing an anchor tenancy agreement backed by
have the operational and financial digestive Conclusions the VimpelCom parent company mitigate those risks.
capacity to increase the size of their business 10x
in 12-18 months by completing the Russian and Delays to 4G spectrum auctions and preferred MNO Teasers have only just been released in the process
Central Asian VimpleCom transactions. With more status agreements mean Ukraine, Kazakhstan, to monetise VimpelComs towers in the Ukraine,
tower assets potentially coming to market in Russia, Armenia and Georgia offer interested towercos a Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia, so transactions
from Tele2 and MegaFon, Russian Towers have time machine to travel back near the start of the are unlikely to close before the second half of 2017
alternate assets to pursue closer to home. mobile broadband era and to facilitate the efficient at the earliest
Business
Models
Over the course of the last year weve had access to
some of the most senior execs in Europes leading
towercos. Over the course of our interviews with them,
theyve shared insights into their business models:
what works, why it works and how they plan to capture
the growth in the European tower industry. From
Tobias Martinez, CEO of Cellnex, to Oscar Cicchetti,
CEO of INWIT to French market incumbent TDF and
American Towers European plans, weve got the inside
track on tower plans for 2017 and beyond.
105 Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex

111 Carlo Ramella, CEO, TowerTel
115 Nikolai Berdin, CEO, Service Telecom
118 Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT
125 Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF
All towercos
Towercos have varying appetites to expand their
footprint into new international markets, and as we
look at the evolution and localisation of the towerco
Business model diversity increases as the tower industry spreads worldwide business model to meet the specific needs of those
international markets, there is one inescapable
Thanks to RBC Capital Markets for inviting TowerXchange back to conclusion: all towercos are not created equal.
provide the opening keynote address at their 2nd Annual Global There is a world of difference between the U.S. blue
Towers Investor Day. With the event bringing together some of the print and the schematics of towercos in Central
leading institutional investors and the management and IR teams and Latin America, Africa, Asia and Europe. In this
of current and prospectively future listed towercos, TowerXchange article we highlight the commonalities and focus
took the opportunity to contrast the nuances of the tower company on the differences to put some context around
investments in this $192bn asset class.
business model as it has evolved across the world. The highlights
of our presentation, with data updated through Q4 2016, are
Why are towercos so important?
presented in this article.
A business model first conceived in the U.S. in the
Keywords: Africa, American Tower, Americas, Asia, Bankability, Best mid to late 1990s, independent towercos now own
of TowerXchange, Bharti Infratel, Business Model, Carve Out, Cellnex, and operate 68% of the worlds 4.04mn telecom
China, China Tower Company, Crown Castle, Decommissioning, towers and investible rooftop structures.
Energy, Europe, Global Tower, IHS, IPO, India, Indonesia, Indus
Towers, Infraco, Infrastructure Sharing, Insights, Investment, Lease The model is elegant in its simplicity. On an MNOs
Rates, MLA, Middle East, Multi-Region, Operator-Led JV, Protelindo, balance sheet a tower is a depreciating asset built
RBC Capital Markets, Rooftops, SBA Communications, STP, Sale & to serve one internal customer. On a towercos
Leaseback, Telesites, Telxius, Tower Counts, Towerco Consolidation, balance sheet a tower is a potential source of long
By Kieron Osmotherly, Founder & CEO,
TowerXchange Towercos, Transfer Assets, USA, Valuation term recurring revenue from multiple investment
grade customers. Investors buy in to this now
proven proposition and, recognising the separation
Read this article to learn: of relatively safe haven infrastructure from retail
< What are the drivers of towerco valuation? risk, reward towercos with valuations in the 11-22x
< How do towerco business models internationally compare with the U.S., and how does that affect range 3-6x typical MNO valuations, creating an
their value drivers? incentive to re-engineer balance sheets, transfer
< Contrasting the business models of independent and operator-led towercos towers from MNOs to towercos, and transform
< Opportunities for towercos to extend their growth narrative: inorganic growth versus diversification towers from cost centres into profit centres.
< The worlds 18 listed towercos and 7 other towercos that could IPO
Im going to steal a story from an advisor to an
investor in one of the first tower sale and leaseback Figure one: global towerco business model variation summary
deals in the late 90s. The CEO of the investor, who
had arrived a little late for a meeting to discuss the
deal, was reading the documentation to catch up
on the detail of the transaction. As the towerco and CALA extension: Asias native towercos:
MNO thrashed out the detail, the CEO flipped to the
towerco revenue model, leaned in to his Associate replicated, evolved... sold out? same same but different
and whispered: This is how much money we make
with one tenant on the tower?
Yes, replied the Associate. Gold standard

The investors CEO turned the page. Africas powercos: Europe:
new complexities, new value creation deviates from standard structures,
And this is how much money we make with two? business models
Yes, replied the Associate.
balance sheets but it has not always been possible Indonesias largest towerco, Protelindo. Again most
Buy as many of these as you can! Concluded the to follow the same roadmap in international of the towers which can be bought by towercos,
CEO of the investor. markets. have been bought by towercos in Indonesia.
Variations from the U.S. gold standard The closest resemblences to the U.S. model are to be Most emerging market towercos, in Sub Saharan
found South of the border in Latin and particularly Africa and Southern and Southeast Asia, provide
The independent towerco market in the U.S. is Central America, where the Master Lease power as a service as well as telecom structures,
unlike any anywhere else in the world, creating a Agreements which underpin towerco business
exposing this formerly real estate-centric business
gold standard in terms of investibility which may be models were copied from the U.S. However, there
model to the complexities of challenging energy
impossible to replicate in international markets. are finite remaining opportunities for large scale
logistics.
growth in the CALA tower markets, with the
Towercos played a central role in the U.S. catching exception of Argentina.
up and surpassing the capacity and quality of Meanwhile in the new European tower market,
mobile networks in much of the rest of the world. Indonesia is another tower market where the we see a lot more variety in both site typology and
Towercos built much of the U.S. network, and North towerco business model is relatively similar to in towerco business model, particularly in over-
American MNOs are almost uniquely dependent the U.S. Michael Gearon, one of the forefathers built markets where as much value may be created
on towercos. U.S. towerco contracts, lease rates and of American Towers CALA business, brought the through decommissioning parallel infrastructure as
escalators capture tremendous value on towerco U.S. blue print with him as one of the founders of through building new sites.
Figure two: Who owns the ~150,000 towers in the U.S.? A closer look at the U.S. tower market
Figure two illustrates what investors in the

mature U.S. tower market are used to seeing: a big
~27,000 red, independent towerco-led ecosystem. North
American telecom infrastructure is dominated
MNO captive by three publicly listed towerco giants; American
7,524 Tower, SBA Communications and Crown Castle,
Operator-led with a couple of rollup plays consolidating a few
thousand further towers, and a long tail of almost
JV infracos (0) 100 independent developers.
115,161 Independent towercos

AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint have sold the majority
of their towers, but retain a total of 7,524 towers
within captive, operator-led towercos. Together U.S.
Source: TowerXchange, Q416 independent and operator-led towercos own 82% of
the investible towers and rooftops in the country.
Figure three: Breakdown of ownership of the worlds 4,041,062 The fragmentation and localisation of the
investible towers and rooftops towerco model
14.5% The picture is quite different globally though, with

pure play independent towercos, again shown
in red in figure three, owning only 14.5% of the
towers. More than half the worlds towers are
MNO captive held by operator-led towercos; towercos that are
themselves majority owned by MNOs. Admittedly
32.1% Operator-led the figures are someone distorted by the sheer scale
of China Tower Company and Indus Towers with
51.4%
JV infracos over 1.7mn and 120,000 towers respectively.
Independent towercos Just under a third of the towers and investible

rooftops, almost 1.3mn, are still owned by MNOs,
but relatively few of these remaining captive towers
2%
Source: TowerXchange, Q416 are acquirable through conventional sale and
Figure four: Average cost per tower comparison Source: TowerXchange sheets of MNOs who have less imperative to raise
cash. However, opportunities to create efficiencies
Capital deployed Average cost per through decommissioning of parallel infrastructure
Region Timeframe Total sold*
US$bn tower have resulted in the creation of entities like Fanasia
U.S. 2008-15 50,701 $24.6bn $485,198 in Iraq and the STC-Mobily joint venture infraco in
Saudi Arabia.
CALA 2011-16 43,726 $8.4bn $199,966
But what really distorts the global map is China,
Europe 2012-16 40,484 $3.2bn $151,843
where the transfer of all 1.7mn MNO towers to
Indonesia 2008-16 15,767 $2.0bn $137,555 China Tower Company, which remains 94% owned
by those carriers and thus itself represents 82% of
Africa 2010-16 43,978 $3.9bn $132,156 the worlds operator-led towers.
India I 2009-12 42,007 $4.9bn $115,028

Average cost per tower comparison
India II 2013-16 42,381 $3.3bn $77,804
Before I dig into the detail of the structural
*Total sold includes transactions where the quantity was disclosed but the deal value was not disclosed to TowerXchange, capital deployed
includes only known deal values, the tower counts from which are excluded from the formula to calculate average cost per tower differences between tower markets, let me
preface by calling attention to an important fact:
leaseback transactions at least, not if towercos and Southeast Asia (excluding India), although
the differences in towerco business models are
comply with the international investment thesis TowerXchange foresee more tower transactions
reflected in valuations.
theyve used to date. here than any other region in the coming 12-18
months.
Cost per tower (see figure four) is a pretty savage
So how does tower ownership break down
valuation, not taking into account lease rate, term
regionally? Theres also deal flow to come in Europe, where
62% of towers remain operator captive, but or escalators, but with the opacity of most tower
India has twice as many towers held by operator-led where a number of tower portfolios retained on transactions its difficult to elicit a superior and
towercos, such as Indus Towers and Bharti Infratel, MNO balance sheets, and operator-led carve out consistent set of metrics.
as pureplay independent towers. The dominance of towercos, could be monetised. M&A is in part driven
operator-led towercos has created a business model by the acquisitiveness of Cellnex and the renewed Youre unlikely to get change from half a million
where the value created by infrastructure sharing is European appetite of American Tower after the bucks for a decent U.S. tower these days a
shared more liberally between MNOs and towercos restructuring of ATC Europe as a joint venture with premium driven by scarcity, zoning restrictions
in India well explain the detail later. Dutch pension fund PGGM. creating barriers for entry, and high capex costs.
71.5% of towers remain on MNO balance sheets in There is a nascent tower market in the Middle East, We think valuations are peaking in CALA at around
the relatively immature tower markets of Southern where almost all towers remain on the balance 40% of U.S. levels, while European towers have
Figure five: At a glance business model comparisons Source: TowerXchange
US standard
Lease rate USD Lease-up GBTs vs alternates Opl simplicity Amendment Decommissioning Maturity
MLAs
USA $2,000
CALA $800-1,100
India $550
Indonesia $1,200
China $320-600
S & SE Asia $700-1,800
Africa $1,500-1,800
Europe $1,000-1,900
been changing hands for an average of around hands for around US$115,000. With deal flow rate for the region, or range where there is wide
US$150,000 each. resuming in India after a nearly four year hiatus, variance within the region.
valuations have fallen by more than 30%, albeit
Fierce competition for sale and leasebacks in in a more rational MNO market: towers in India Lease up: the one factor in common with every
Indonesia is keeping valuations at a little over are settling into valuations around US$75-80,000 regional variation on the towerco business
US$130,000, around double replacement cost, which each, and the consistency of terms, including lease model is a focus on creating value by leasing
in turn fuels healthy organic growth. Average cost pricing, means we are unlikely to see significant up towers to multiple tenants.
per tower is similar in Africa, where the tower variation from that number as 4G continues to drive
transaction deal pipeline is slowing, with just a consolidation in the Indian tower market. GBTs (ground based towers) vs alternates:
handful of Airtel towers left to sell, and some mid- compares the mix of site typologies within typical
level operators towers coming to market in Kenya, At a glance business model comparisons towerco portfolios, ranging from 4/4 quadrants,
Senegal and Mozambique. reflecting that a significant majority of sites are
Figure five provides a simplified comparison of GBTs, 3/4 a smaller majority of sites are GBTs, 2/4
Meanwhile India demonstrates the impact of different facets of the towerco business model. about half and half, 1/4 indicates that the majority
market restructuring: before 122 MNO licenses of sites are non-GBTs, such as in Europe where the
were cancelled in 2012, towers were changing Lease rate: presents an estimated average lease majority of cell sites are rooftops and alternate site
typologies (water towers, church spires, billboards Reviewing figure five, the first row illustrates The CALA tower market really took off in the last
and other street furniture). the gold standard: everything in the U.S. is how eight years, with a wave of sale and leasebacks,
tower investors might want it to be. Telecom and an independent developer segment evolving in
U.S. standard MLAs: simplified comparison of infrastructure consists primarily of high structural parallel.
typical MLA structure with the MLA structure found capacity, ground based towers, and towercos
in the oldest tower market, the U.S. operate a low operational complexity, steel and Recently lease rates in CALA have come under
grass model providing just the structure and downward pressure, with the impact on margins
Opl (operational) simplicity: the more quadrants, the real estate. A strong Master Lease Agreement compounded by forex devaluations and rising
the simpler the business model. 4/4 quadrants defines a healthy lease rate, averaging around land costs. Independent developers are often
indicates a pure steel and grass, real estate US$2,000, often with fixed escalators that have been undercutting the U.S. publics, slowing their organic
oriented model. Complexity typically originates running for as many as 20+ years in what has been growth prospects. Lease rate discounting and
from energy logistics or particularly challenging a low inflation environment. Amendment revenue deviation from standard MLA terms has been
operational circumstances. has been another significant value driver for U.S. so dramatic on the part of some independent
towercos, while zoning regulations mean there is developers that some may be uninvestible by the
Amendment: indicates whether towercos derive
minimal parallel infrastructure, so minimal need U.S. publics.
amendment revenue when an existing tenant
for decommissioning. The downside? The U.S. tower
pays another tenancy fee for overlaying a new
industry is mature, so there are finite remaining With half of CALAs towers on towerco books, but
technology. For example, amendment revenue is a
growth opportunities. Hence American Tower and with Amrica Mvil and Telefnica launching their
significant value driver in the Americas, whereas
SBA pursuing international opportunities, while own operator-led towercos in the last 18 months,
in India amendment (there known as loading)
Crown Castle diversifies into fibre and small cells. the continent is almost sold out, notwithstanding
derives only a modest one-off execution fee.
a few virgin markets (Argentina, Cuba) and
So if you can only invest so much in the U.S., how the prospective rollup of the aforementioned
Decommissioning: indicates the degree of value
do international markets compare? independent developers, who own 12,216 of the
creation potential through the decommissioning
of parallel infrastructure. Decommissioning is regions 164,207 towers.
where towercos acquire two towers in overlapping Lets look at the CALA region. Since shortly
locations, break the lease and dismantle or moth after the turn of the millennium, U.S. towercos Meanwhile in Asia a native tower industry with
ball one tower, and consolidate tenancies onto have extended their footprints into Central and an entirely different genetic code was evolving.
the other. 4/4 quadrants indicates the highest level Latin America, initially using the same contract There are a handful of towercos evolving to broadly
of opportunity for decommissioning, down to 1/4 templates as in the U.S. in Central America, but replicate the U.S. blue print especially those in
representing the lowest. gradually evolving for example ground rent was Indonesia. And there is some commonality in
a pass through in much of South America, which India among the many entities now rolled up into
Maturity: sums up the maturity of the tower market meant towercos had less direct relationships with American Tower India, but even these independent
in terms of longevity and how established and landlords, although this is changing. Pricing is often towercos tend to conform to the lease pricing
consistent contract structures and business models pre-agreed in South America, with escalators CPI and contractual terms set out by the majority of
are. linked, which again differs from the U.S. operator-led towercos and it is these operator-led
towercos that largely define the unique Asian tower unique market with huge volumes of new build. effectively kick-started by Cellnex and their
market structure. With lease prices reportedly as low as US$320-600 insatiable appetite to rollup European towers
the question remains whether, in the run up to IPO Cellnex entered three new countries in the
Vodafone, Idea Cellular and Bharti Airtels joint anticipated in late 2017, China Tower Company second half of 2016! The European towerco
venture Indus Towers, and their close cousins can transform itself into a highly investible profit business model deviates significantly from the U.S.
Bharti Infratel, remain majority owned by MNOs. centre, like its Western counterparts, or whether blueprint because the network topology differs so
While 28% of Bharti Infratel is already owned by the indebted towerco is destined to be a cost centre, significantly. While the majority of U.S. sites on
public shareholders, both they and Indus Towers enhancing the value of its parents China Mobile, American Tower, SBA and Crown Castles balance
may see investment by third parties in 2017. The China Unicom and China Telecom, who between sheets are ground based towers, in Europe almost
genetic code of operator-led towercos generally them own 94% equity. all urban and many suburban sites are rooftops
leaves them predisposed toward a more equitable as much as 60% of Europes 600,000 cell sites
share of value creation across balance sheets; lease The operator-led towercos of Asia generally have a are rooftops and other alternate site typologies.
prices are generally lower, amendment revenue symbiotic relationship with their parent and tenant This brings the landlords into play as greater
or loading is sometimes treated very differently. MNOs which enables them, among other things, to stakeholders, and European landlords are savvy,
In India, when a new tenant is added to a tower, position themselves to take a leadership position in often demanding supplementary rent with the
the original tenant enjoys a 20% discount on their the creation of Smart Cities and the implementation addition of a second tenant, which significantly
lease rate, with a 30% discount for a third tenant, of heterogeneous networks. recalibrates the model.
and India has even introduced parity in lease price
escalation to ensure anchor tenants pay the same as As the Big Four towercos who dominate the SSA Contract structures vary across Europe. In some
new tenants. tower market mature toward consolidation or IPO, markets amendment revenue can be generated
the investment community needs to be cognizant much like the U.S., while in other markets an
When reviewing Asia, edotco merits special of the unique hybrid towerco-powerco business anchor tenant has retained substantial reserve
mention. While the carve-out towerco remains model in Africa. Outside of South Africa, which space effectively nullifying potential amendment
majority owned by Axiata, and thus is classified more closely resembles the U.S. steel and grass revenue.
by TowerXchange as operator-led, edotco recently business model, towercos in Africa are as much
raised US$600mn by selling undisclosed stakes to energy logistics businesses as they are real estate Europe is simply a much more mature, built-out
INCJ and to Axiatas majority investor Khazanah. companies. This has implications both bad and in fact over-built network, and investors are
edotco seeks to draw from the best of both worlds good: one, they are more complex, more exposed always keen to seek evidence that larger scale
driving value and efficiency under independent to the vagaries of fluctuating oil prices and forex; decommissioning plays can generate returns within
towerco-like commercial terms, yet with a deep but two they have another means of creating and an optimal two to three year timescale.
appreciation of their clients perspective, drawing capturing value in fact the towercos in both Africa
upon edotcos own heritage as a carve out from an and Asia are smartly deploying capex to reduce Seeking to extend the global tower industry
MNO. energy opex and improve their margins. growth narrative
China stands apart from our analysis of Asia as a And finally to the new European tower market, With 68% of the worlds towers on the books of one

zone, whether it be by allowing an MNO to retain
a significant stake in a joint venture (as IHS did in
Nigeria, where MTN retained a non-controlling
51% equity stake), or requiring bidders to entertain
opportunities in markets with foreign direct
investment limits, like Algeria and Bangladesh.
With the USA effectively sold out, just a handful of portfolios left up
for grabs in India, with the majority of tier one MNO towers in Africa TowerXchange see an increasing proportion of
sold, and with Telesites and Telxius reducing the chance of acquiring
Amrica Mvil or Telefnica towers in CALA, how can listed and other
acquisitive towercos extend their growth narrative?
future transactions being towerco-on-towerco
consolidations, which has driven valuations in
Europe and Africa for example, but it has been
precisely the listed towercos refusal to pay a
premium for independent developer towers that
has effectively stalled deal flow in CALA.
Diversification: how do the economics compare?

type of towerco or another, there are obviously Private towercos can sometimes be more flexible
reducing inorganic growth opportunities, and and agile than the U.S. publics, who have been
If towercos are running out of ground based towers
one must remember that towercos do no want very disciplined buyers to date: they have their
to buy, they can always diversify into the provision
all the towers. Parallel infrastructure may have investment thesis and they stick to it. The publics
of other assets and services.
limited value as any need for infill sites may be have the discipline to walk away from a deal if they
offset by the cost of decommissioning duplicate dont like the terms or valuation, giving rise to the
The economics of alternate site typologies varies
sites so in some markets only one or two of the growth of private towercos like IHS, Helios Towers
as a function of the contractual relationship with
three-plus tower portfolios may be investible. The Africa and Eaton Towers in Africa; Phoenix Tower
the asset owner. For example, a towerco can make
attractiveness of buy and leasebacks with so-called International, Group TorreSur and Digital Bridge
tier two MNOs is further reduced as no-one wants in the Americas, and a host of private towercos a small margin from aggregating privately owned
to do a tower deal with an anchor tenant who cant in Myanmar. Some of these private towercos can rooftops for MNOs, or they can acquire rights very
pay their bills. achieve scale rolling up tower portfolios that are similar to an owner and derive a similar margin as
lesser priorities for listed towerco giants, a strategy they do from a macro tower. For example, American
With the USA effectively sold out, just a handful often predicated upon an eventual sale to one Tower recently announced a deal to acquire
of portfolios left up for grabs in India, with the of those listed giants once the assets have been innovative French towerco FPS, which had acquired
majority of tier one MNO towers in Africa sold, cleaned up (structures or permitting improved et rooftop management firm LOXEL with access to
and with Telesites and Telxius reducing the chance cetera). 20,000 rooftops, and which had struck deals with
of acquiring Amrica Mvil or Telefnica towers highway infrastructure provider APRR and the
in CALA, how can listed and other acquisitive Further sale and leaseback opportunities may electricity transmission tower operation subsidiary
towercos extend their growth narrative? require that bidders move outside their comfort of EDF for 300 and 76,000 sites respectively.
In the U.S. weve seen Crown Castle, American explored by the majority of towercos, and there strategic sale seems equally likely. Deustche
Tower and Digital Bridge bet big on small cells may be merit in focusing on core competencies. Telekom continue to consider whether to list,
and DAS, a strategy replicated by Cellnex, INWIT, TowerXchange offer one simple conclusion: we like sell or retain the 31,000+ sites they own within
Wireless Infrastructure Group and Arqiva in to see towercos committing to diversify into small Deutsche Funkturm. And Telefnica and Turkcell
Europe, and by the Indonesian towercos. Small cells, cells, or committing to focus on their core business could reconsider listing their operator-led towercos
and their larger cousins microcells, lamp posts and of macro sites. Any towerco that dabbles half- (Telxius and Global Tower respectively) in a more
DAS, provide infill solutions that will be particularly heartedly may quickly find themselves overtaken by receptive market. Meanwhile, the need to raise
important to realise the LTE experience, to enable competitors in the land-grab for the heterogeneous capital for 4G could see further major transactions
Smart Cities and the IoT, and for 5G. TowerXchange network layer. in the Indian Tower market.
are increasingly convinced that the majority of such
sites will be provisioned to multiple operators by Whats next? Conclusion
towercos and specialist independent distributed
network operators, rather than being self-deployed There are 18 listed towercos worldwide (American After spending five years of contrasting
for the usage of a single MNO. Tower, Balitower, Bharti Infratel, Cellnex, Crown
international tower markets to the U.S. for investors
Castle, DIF, EI Towers, GTL, IBS, INWIT, Miteno,
more familiar with the oldest growth North
While theres enough DNA in common with the OCK, Protelindo, RAIWAY, SBA, STP, Telesites and
American tower market, it has become increasingly
tower business for small cells to be a natural Tower Bersama). With the cancellation of Telxius
clear to me that we may never see tower investment
diversification for towercos, new skills in active and Global Tower IPOs, and with U.S. towercos
opportunities to match the gold standard seen
network management are required, the business taking a valuation hit with the countrys surprise
in the U.S. North Americas tower networks were
can be more SG&A heavy, and the ecosystem is election result, 2016 hasnt been the best year for
largely built by towercos, U.S. carriers are uniquely
more fragmented than for macro cells. To drive towerco equities, although it certainly hasnt seen
dependent on towercos, and the calibration of lease
a small cells business to scale, one has to build the carnage witnessed in 2002 when the technology
rates and escalators in the country has created
relationships one municipality and one landlord at bubble burst and investors misdiagnosed towercos
highly investible infrastructure asset class.
a time. as tech rather than infrastructure plays, taking
American Tower, Crown Castle and SBA down to
We have also seen towercos diversify into fibre; penny stocks and taking some of their competitors The often-subtle differences between international
its a big part of Crown Castles current strategy out of business. tower markets and towerco business models
in the U.S.; Protelindo, STP and Balitower own create new value drivers, but that doesnt mean
significant fibre assets in Indonesia; and fibre may 2017-18 should be better years for listed towercos we think international tower markets are less
be a big part of IHSs future in Nigeria. Even the and for towerco IPOs. China Tower Company are investible; valuations both of equities and in
private towercos are looking at fibre: for example, driving toward an IPO at the end of 2017, edotco private transactions reflect the premium value of
Brazils third largest independent developer Brazil may follow in 2018. IHS increasingly looks too big U.S. towers, and the relative value of international
Tower Company has spun off a subsidiary Arqueiro for a U.S. public to digest they may follow their assets.
Telecom. US$800mn bond with an IPO in the next couple
of years. Arqiva could utilise the public markets All towercos, and all international tower markets,
Ultimately, small cells and fibre are yet to be to restructure their balance sheet, although a are not created equal
The rise of the operator-led
The drivers behind the carve-out of operator-led
towercos
towerco While the efficient consolidation of parallel

infrastructure, co-building and the acceleration
Which are the leading carve-out, operator controlled towercos, and will of rollouts incentivise infrastructure sharing, the
main driver for MNOs to carve out towercos is more
they be monetised? strategic than operational.
68% of the worlds 4.04mn cell sites are now owned and operated
On an MNO balance sheet a telecom tower is
by specialist towercos and infracos rather than MNOs, but half
a depreciating asset serving the needs of one
the worlds cell sites are owned by towercos and infracos that customer. Take that same tower asset and transfer it
are themselves majority-owned by MNOs. While that statistic to a towerco balance sheet and it becomes a source
is somewhat distorted by the huge operator-led towercos of of long term, recurring revenue from a growing
China (China Tower Company) and India (Indus Towers, Bharti number of credit worthy tenants. That same tower
Infratel), the last couple of years in the tower industry have been asset also benefits from the towercos renewed
By Kieron Osmotherly, Founder & characterised by an increasing global predilection by MNOs to focus on creating efficiencies and scale in passive
CEO, TowerXchange carve out and retain control of their towercos. infrastructure management. The capital markets
recognise the fundamental difference in business
Keywords: Active Infrasharing, Anchor Tenant, Asset Register, Bankability, Bharti Infratel, Brookfield, model, and appreciate the separation of telecom
Business Model, CTC, CTIL, Capacity Enhancements, Carve Out, China Tower Company, Deal Structure, infrastructure from retail risk, thus a tower on
Deutsche Funkturm, Due Diligence, edotco, First Tower Company, Global Tower, INWIT, IPO, Idea Cellular an MNO balance sheet might be valued at 3-6x,
Infrastructure Services, Indus Towers, Infraco, Infrastructure Funds, Infrastructure Sharing, Insights, whereas on a towerco balance sheet it might be
Lease Rates, MBNL, MLA, MNOs, MTS Towers, Mitratel, Mobily, Multi-Region, National Tower Company, valued at 12-22x.
NetWorkS!, New Market Entrant, Novation of Leases, Operator-Led JV, RANsharing, Reliance Infratel, STC,
Sale & Leaseback, Site Surveys, Telefnica, Telesites, Telxius, Tenancy Ratios, Towercom, Towercos, Transfer This relative valuation arbitrage has also been
Assets, Valuation, Victus Networks, VimpelCom the driver for the sale and leaseback of operators
towers, but in 2016 only 6,295 towers were sold and
leased back by MNOs worldwide, whereas in the
Read this article to learn: same year new operator-led towercos were carved
< Which are the worlds newest and largest operator-led towercos and infracos? out and retained by MNOs representing a total of
< What have been the drivers for MNOs to carve out and keep towers? 1,761,357 towers. Again, that statistic is distorted
< Will MNOs monetise these towercos? How? When? by China Tower Company, which represents
< Ten critical considerations when carving out a towerco 1.7mn, but even excluding CTC, carved out towers
outnumbered sold and leased back towers by
The worlds top 21 MNO-led towercos and joint venture infracos (by site count) Source: TowerXchange, Q416
Towerco Country(s) Owner(s) Site count Monetisation

Q416
China Tower China China Mobile 38%, China Unicom 28.1%, 1,700,000 Expected to IPO in late 2017
Company China Telecom 27.9%, China Reform
Corporation 6%
Indus Towers India 42% Bharti Infratel, 42% Vodafone India, 145,996 Recent speculation suggests one or
16% Idea Cellular more shareholders may monetise
their stake
Towercom India RCOM 96%, 6 PE and hedge fund investors 4% ~45,000 Signed binding term sheet to sell to
(formerly Reliance Infratel) Brookfield in December 2016
Bharti Infratel India Bharti Airtel 72%, public shareholders 28% 38,642 Board approved monetisation of a
significant stake on 25 October 2016
Deutsche Funkturm Germany Unclear but believed to be 100% owned by 31,636 Plans to monetise reportedly shelved
Deutsche Telekom after Telxius IPO cancelled
Unnamed STC-Mobily Saudi Arabia Ownership structure yet to be announced ~22,000 STC and Mobily cancelled a sale and
joint venture infraco leaseback process to pilot a joint
venture infraco
edotco Bangladesh, Cambodia, Axiata, INCJ, Khazanah 17,054 In December 2016 Axiata announced
Malaysia, Myanmar, owned, the divestment of undisclosed stakes
Pakistan, Sri Lanka over 25,000 in edotco to Innovation Network Corp
including of Japan and Khazanah for US$400mn
managed and US$200mn respectively. Unlikely to
IPO before 2018
Telxius Brazil, Chile, Germany, Telefnica 100% 16,233 IPO cancelled in Q316
Peru, Spain
Telesites Mexico, Costa Rica Amrica Mvil 58.5%, public shareholders 14,924 Listed at the end of 2015
41.5%
First Tower Russia Unclear but believed to be 100% owned by 14,000 Carved out with a view to future
Company MegaFon trade sale
NetWorkS! Poland T-Mobile 50%, Orange 50% 13,000 Speculation suggests NetWorkS!
could be sold although Orange and
T-Mobile retain asset ownership
The worlds top 21 MNO-led towercos and joint venture infracos (by site count) Source: TowerXchange, Q416
Towerco Country(s) Owner(s) Site count Monetisation

Q416
DIF Thailand 18-33% True, 67-82% Unit Holders 12,183 Listed at the end of 2013
CTIL UK Vodafone 50%, Telefnica 50% 12,000 Tower assets have been transferred
to the CTIL balance sheet. VF and
TEF may have differing appetite to
monetise
MBNL UK EE (BT) 50%, Three 50% 12,000 EE and Three retain asset ownership,
but JV includes active as well as
passive infrastructure
INWIT Italy Telecom Italia 60%, Institutional Funds 36%, 11,200 Previously explored trade sale, TIM
Individuals 4% now appear committed to retain
controlling stake
Idea Cellular India Unclear but believed to be 100% owned by 11,000 Reportedly hired advisors to explore
Infrastructure Idea Cellular monetisation
Services
National Tower Russia Unclear but believed to be 100% owned by 10,400 Carved out with a view to future trade
Company VimpelCom sale
Global Tower / Turkey, Ukraine, Unclear but believed to be 100% owned by 8,681 Cancelled IPO in 2016
UkrTower Belarus, Cyprus Turkcell
Mitratel Indonesia Unclear but believed to be 100% owned by ~8,000 Telkom agreed to transfer Mitratel
Telkom Indonesia to Tower Bersama in an innovative
share swap agreement until the deal
was cancelled in 2015
Victus Networks Greece Vodafone Greece 50%, Wind Hellas ~7,000 Network sharing joint venture
(VimpelCom) 50% encompassing towers and RAN. No
apparent plan to moentise
MTS Towers Russia Unclear but believed to be 100% owned by 5,500 MTS carved out around half of their
MTS towers into MTS Towers, but claims to
have no plans to monetise
almost 10:1, thanks to the creation of Telxius, Who owns and operates the worlds 4.04mn cell sites?
Telesites, First Tower Company, National Tower
Company, MTS Towers and Powercom in Namibia.
585,139
Will MNOs eventually monetise their carve-out
towercos?
While many MNO-led towercos are carved out MNO captive

as a first step toward monetisation of the assets,
either through sale to a strategic buyer such as 1,296,600 Operator-led
American Tower or Cellnex, or by selling a stake
to an infrastructure investor or pension fund, an JV infracos
increasingly proportion are monetised through IPO, 2,077,223
while some MNOs are choosing to retain a majority Independent towercos
stake their carve-out towercos.
The main incentive to monetise towers?

Restructuring balance sheets many MNOs are 82,100 Source: TowerXchange, Q416
seeking to reduce with growing debts amidst
shrinking margins and pressure to prop up their
own share prices with dividends. operator-captive towercos trace their origins Macro economic factors made 2016 a tough year
to government or regulatory pressure. China to IPO any business successfully, and the tower
The main incentive for MNOs to retain a majority mandating the co-construction and sharing of business suffered its own setbacks with the
stake in a carve out towerco? Control. telecoms infrastructure forced the carve-out of cancellation of operator-led towerco IPOs in Spain
China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecoms by Telefnica (Telxius) and in Turkey by Turkcell
Consider this example: Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM) towers to China Tower Company, while regulatory (Global Tower).
carved out towerco INWIT, then listed a 36% stake pressure to ease the competitive dominance of
in on the Milan stock exchange in 2015, raising Telcel in Mexico was a major driver behind the Combined with traditional overvaluation, political
780mn. TIM then entered negotiations to sell carve out of Telesites. Telesites has already listed, and economic uncertainty in 2016 knocked the
their controlling stake in INWIT, but stepped back China Tower Company seem set on a path to IPO in confidence of entrepreneurs and investors which
from the deal when the gap between the value they late 2017. harmed IPO prospects in every sector. However the
ascribed to retaining control was not reflected in outlook for 2017 is more positive. Equity indices are
the premium offered by prospective buyers. So are the vast majority of those 2,077,223 operator- at an all time high in many markets, and volatility
led towerco towers destined to be sold to trade has fallen, both of which are positive signals that
Rather than being created to relieve debt, some buyers, or monetised through IPO? 2017 could be a good year for IPOs. The strong
momentum from Q4, where IPO activity rose by tower-industry veteran Chuck Green, now Executive much of the infrastructure gap, Mobilink took the
25% compared to Q3, is another positive sign. Chairman of Helios Towers Africa. It refers to the opportunity to create an internal towerco profit
practice of MNOs retaining a minority stake in their centre in 2011, and began leasing up their towers
What does this mean for the tower business? tower assets during a sale and leaseback, piggy at a commercial rate, achieving a tenancy ratio
TowerXchange expect 2017-18 to be better years backing on the value being added as a towerco of 1.25. Now ~9,000 Mobilink towers are set to be
for towerco IPOs, not least because some high enhances and leases up the towers. If the towerco sold, potentially for as much as US$1bn, as part
quality towercos are maturing toward their next business model is a good idea, its a good idea to of VimpelComs tower monetisation programme.
major liquidity event: we could see China Tower, keep some skin in the game to avoid looking like a Significant tower cash flow has been added,
Arqiva, IHS, edotco and Guodong come to market schmuck! enhancing the value of the asset.
in the next two years, while Telxius, Global Tower
and Deutsche Funkturm could reconsider IPOs in a An increasing number of MNOs are behaving like Its all happening in Russia
more receptive climate. towercos by leasing space on their towers to their
peers on a commercial basis. Internal towercos VimpelCom may be playing out a similar strategy in
In 2016 TMT, Industrials and Healthcare were the such as those run by Safaricom in Kenya, where their home market of Russia. VimpelCom has carved
top three sectors for IPO. It is more than likely that the wholesale department is leasing space on 800 out 10,400 towers into National Tower Company,
TMT will be the main sector coming to the equity of their 4,000 towers, and Vodacom in South Africa, and appointed CEO Thomas Jonell, former CTO of
markets in 2017. EY say they expect some unicorns which reportedly has a tenancy ratio of 1.8, are not Eaton Towers, to tidy up the asset register and add
in the US, and this may drive some other big tech included in our total of operator-led towerco sites. value to the assets prior to monetisation.
IPOs in other regions.
Vodacoms internal towerco is one part of a larger Competitors MegaFon may be following a similar
Schmuck equity and in-house towercos story in South Africa where many of the local strategy with their carve out of 14,000 towers into
opcos have become disenchanted with lease rates First Tower Company. Meanwhile, MTS has carved
Our sizing of the operator-led towerco segment offered by the countrys leading towerco, prompting out around half their towers into MTS Towers,
does not capture the whole picture. MNOs also some to boycott further co-locations, whilst at least although their CEO claims to have no interest in
have significant stakes in several independent three of the four major MNOs, the aforementioned monetising the asset only in creating a new profit
towercos, ranging from Millicoms schmuck equity Vodacom, Telkom and Cell C, have formed internal centre as Russias culture of infrastructure sharing
stake in Helios Towers Africa, from which they are towercos and are leasing their sites to each other. takes root. Russias fourth MNO, Tele2, are taking a
reportedly seeking to exit; Tata retaining 34.5% of contrasting approach seeking the sale and leaseback
the former Viom Networks, acquired by American Were hoping to soon have a success story of their towers, although rumour suggests they may
Tower India in 2016; to MTNs stakes in joint illustrating the monetisation of an internal prefer a manage with license to lease deal structure
venture towercos with American Tower in Ghana towerco. First movers Mobilink, part of the in which they retain ownership and partner with a
and Uganda and with IHS in Nigeria (in which MTN VimpelCom family, have the biggest tower towerco to lease up the assets.
retained 49%, 49% and 51% respectively). network in Pakistan, which they were reluctant to
share whilst it remained a source of competitive Beyond direct ownership, TowerXchange are aware
Schmuck equity is a term we first heard used by advantage. Recognising that other MNOs had closed of an increasing number of MNOs with an appetite
to invest in towercos and that appetite more
often than not extends beyond the MNOs
Ten critical considerations when carving out a towerco
existing footprint. It makes sense of course 1. Hire people with experience running a towerco. A towerco is a fundamentally different business from the
its an asset class MNOs understand. property / network management department of an MNO. Its not just about managing towers; its about selling
space.
Conclusion 2. Your asset register almost certainly is not accurate enough to optimally facilitate co-location sales, nor to
survive the rigorous analysis of due diligence during monetisation. Appoint a specialist company to audit and
In some (not all) tower markets, MNO tenants improve your asset register youll be surprised how much capacity can be found in your tower network (and
have vociferously and publicly complained how much more equipment there is on your sites than you might have been aware of!)
about towerco lease rates and escalators
3. Get all the permits for all your towers.
and the pressure they put on the MNOs
operating margins, firing angry letters at their 4. Consider converting bilateral swaps to commercial leases, even if it means paying tax.
landlords. But in many cases those same MNOs
5. Get your towers professionally monitored. Especially if the grid is unreliable (or if some sites are off grid),
negotiated a higher lease rate to maximise if you cant professionally measure the performance of the energy equipment on your towers, you cant
cash released when they sold the towers, or professionally manage the energy equipment on your towers.
secured a discounted new build based on a
6. Deferring maintenance is a bad idea. If you plan to carve out and lease up or monetise your towers, it might
healthy lease rate. Towercos are deploying
seem like a good time to postpone non-critical maintenance, but these towers are going to be the life-blood of the
capital to build and acquire towers with a long
towerco look after them!
horizon to achieve a return on capital invested
sometimes as long as 20 years. In very few 7. Dont retain any more reserve space than is absolutely necessary. Too many operator-led towercos parent
other industries will you find a business MNOs reserve far more space than they need in the short term that space could be converted into recurring
partner pricing based on a 20 year ROI. If it revenue from another client. Take more space when you need it, but dont reserve it up front.
were a better deal to build not rent, MNOs 8. Draft the Master Lease Agreement (MLA) with extreme care better still, appoint a law firm with experience
would build not rent. of drafting these documents all the value is captured in the MLA. Most favoured nation clauses guaranteeing
your parent MNO the best lease rate could limit a towercos ability to negotiate bulk deals. Restrictions limiting
MNOs should be less anxious about how competitors access to strategic sites directly harm valuations. And provisions allowing RANsharing can be
profitable the tower business is, and focus tremendously value destructive; include them if you must, but draft them with great care.
their efforts on partnering with, and 9. Consider buying the land under your most valuable towers. This enhances margins and protects you against
participating in, the tower industry. Carve the dual threats of escalating lease costs and ground lease aggregators.
out, keep and lease up your towers; carve out
and monetise; sell and leaseback whatever 10. If youre going to list your carve out towerco, dont rush it. It takes time to change mind sets and to think
like a towerco, it takes time to clean up your asset register, it takes time to upgrade structures to accommodate
MNOs do with their towers, any tower retained
multiple tenants and most of all, there is often pent up demand for tenancies on your towers give yourself
captive on an operator balance sheet and not
a year, preferably two, before IPO your towers will be more valuable if you take time to lease them up and to
being offered for commercial co-location is an
professionalise management. If you need cash sooner, sell and leaseback
underexploited asset
Scalable, replicable, successful: TowerXchange: Since your highly successful
IPO in 2015 youve continued to make waves
how the Cellnex model is rolling out

in Europe can you share Cellnexs current
vision for the company and the European tower
market?
across Europe
Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: At the time of the
TowerXchange spoke to Cellnex Telecom CEO, Tobias Martinez, about IPO we made it clear that our project was primarily
Cellnexs success and plans for the future a growth driven project, rather than dividend-
driven, for the next three to five years. In the last
When Cellnex began operating in telecoms towers, their aim two years weve been able to show that were doing
was to emulate a more US-style towerco model in Europe. this, we have closed around 1.5bn in acquisitions,
It wasnt an easy task - not only did they need to acquire gone from one country to five countries, diversified
the towers and find the tenants, but the whole market had geographical risk from 95% of revenues in one
to be created from a continent of disparate and unwilling country (Spain) to 60% in 2017.
stakeholders. Five years later, Cellnex has deployed around
1.5bn across five countries and is in a strong position After the consolidation of our acquisitions in The
to continue their rapid growth. TowerXchange had the Netherlands, France and the UK we will be a true
opportunity to ask Tobias Martinez a few questions, and we European based company in terms of revenues.
found out more about Cellnexs business model, partnerships Telecoms accounts for about 55% of our revenues
Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex without counting our strong broadcast franchise in
and plans for the future.
Spain. Telecoms is also our main source of growth,
Keywords: 5G, Asset Register, Bouygues, Cellnex, Co-locations, DAS, Debt Finance, Decommissioning, which is why were not investing in broadcast
Densification, EBITDA, Editorials, Europe, France, Infrastructure Funds, Italy, Netherlands, Private outside our legacy infrastructure in Spain.
Equity, Sale & Leaseback, Spain, Shere Group, Small Cells, Towercos, UK
We see infrastructure outsourcing from MNOs and
consolidation between tower operators as the main
Read this article to learn: driving forces in our industry. We are focusing
< Cellnexs vision for the European market on building partnerships with our customers and
< How they see the French market developing MNOs, showing theres space for a Europe-wide
< Their ambitions in the UK and Netherlands telco and towerco relationship. We have been paving
< Cellnexs position towards competition in Europe the way for a market which did not exist in Europe
< How their business model allows them to test and consolidate in key markets four or five years ago.
< The role of small cells in Cellnexs vision for growth
Infrastructure sharing in markets like Europe,
where macro tower networks overlap and are
becoming redundant, support the case for triggering
efficiencies in terms of revenues and to reduce
pressure on ARPU. Europe is a mature market so
change is not demand driven. Although build to suit
projects remain; efficiency gain is the main indicator
in Europe.
MNOs are focusing on creating and selling

connectivity services and content rather than
deploying more passive infrastructure. They have
to focus on how to manage convergence, and as the
main players in content delivery, theyre facing a lot
of challenges and asking for more and more cash
out. We think outsourcing will continue to trigger
the monetisation of existing assets to help them with
these challenges.
The implications of 5G will require a more dense

network in urban areas. Traditional macro towers
are here to stay but more cells, particularly small
cells, will be needed to implement new technologies.
Image courtesy of Cellnex
Its clear the outsourcing model is here to stay and to
grow. users. The second is related to efficiency, focused in Each element of this value chain must be aware
rural areas, where clearly maintaining redundant of its role. Ours is to provide the expected value to
TowerXchange: You acquired towers in France passive infrastructure becomes costly and makes no our customers in terms of increasing efficiency. We
in 2016 from Bouygues, and have just agreed sense for MNOs who have to phase in 4G/5G. aim to create value and be a source of efficiencies
another deal with them. How do you see Cellnexs for our customers. We see the scope for further
role in the French market developing? With regards to Bouygues Telecom, we aim to foster densification of the current networks in France and
a long term partnership with them, as well as our demand for 4G and deployment of 5G. This is why
Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: In France as well as other partners, and to capture opportunities as we see outsourcing opportunities in France, and all
other European countries we have two main types they arise. For us its attractive to secure a direct of these opportunities are being assessed.
of projects and drivers. One is related to growth partnership in order to acquire towers and establish
to improve connectivity linked to LTE rollout and long term relationships rather than just acquire For us France is a key piece of our European project
quality service for thousands of concurring data assets from an infraco company. and Bouygues is one of the most active MNOs

but the market is growing, the MNOs are more
favourable to outsource their portfolios, and we feel
theres enough space for two or three infrastructure
operators with a European scope. If you look at
the U.S. you will find three main towercos and if
First we try to do a small acquisition to learn the market, gain our own you benchmark Europe and the U.S. it seems quite
reasonable following a similar trend.
experience and meet customers. The second step is trying to identify
opportunities to gain size and scale in the country. And the third step is
consolidation in order to be able to provide nationwide coverage
TowerXchange: Your acquisition of Shere Group
nicely consolidated your position in the Dutch
market, and also got you a foothold in the UK.
Would Cellnex be interested if a larger UK-based
portfolio of towers were to come to market?
from an outsourcing perspective. It makes sense to four years. In 2012 we saw them when we bought Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: The answer is clearly
establish a relationship as theyre our anchor French the first 1,000 towers from Telefnica. Weve been yes. Even in view of Brexit, although we will need to
customer. Thus, our ambition is to create a strong competing with them this whole time. Obviously the better understand the future legal framework.
French operating platform to develop relationships market wasnt the same then, but we have spent a
with market players. long time educating the MNOs on outsourcing and Looking at our short term plans in the UK, the idea is
I think the attractiveness of the European market to replicate our international expansion model. First
TowerXchange: American Tower recently now is higher than it was in 2012. The fact that we try to do a small acquisition to learn the market,
acquired FPS Towers in France, how do you AMT, and maybe other players, are focusing on gain our own experience and meet customers. The
feel about their gearing up to take a run at the Europe as a growth market is a confirmation of the second step is trying to identify opportunities to
European market? opportunities which will continue to arise. gain size and scale in the country. And the third
step is consolidation in order to be able to provide
Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: Well, you can expect All in all, its not bad news and we dont foresee a nationwide coverage.
that in a growing market your potential competitors dramatic change in the competitive environment
will focus on it as well. This is what is going on because of this in France or in Europe. Obviously For us the UK is like France: key in order to build a
in Europe. This is not bad news. Maybe this is a it means that in France we will see TDF, AMT and European project. We are fully committed to finding
confirmation of the opportunity available in Europe Cellnex trying to capture as much as possible of the and developing a UK platform medium to long term.
for many players and not just from the Cellnex point potential embedded in this market.
of view. TowerXchange: Do you plan future growth in the
Our project is a European one and maybe with this Dutch market?
Weve seen AMT on every single competitive acquisition the level of competitiveness in Europe
transaction weve assessed in Europe in the last will be higher than it was two or three years ago, Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: We like the Dutch
three main vectors to finance our growth. In
priority order these are firstly debt maximisation
and optimisation. The debt markets are currently
very open and historically attractive in terms of
interests rates, and the duty of the company is to
optimise and maximise this opportunity as much
as possible. In fact this is something we have
shown with the last corporate bond which we
issued early January for 335mn and we had an
over-subscription of 10x in our order book. This
illustrates both the liquidity of the debt markets as
well as the credibility of our balance structure.
The second is to identify equity partners, either by

country or by project. We dont want to stress the
level of debt of the company beyond 5-6x EBITDA
because we have the option to co-invest with other
equity partners. In the last 18 months weve had
different approaches from financial investors that
would be willing to co-invest with us by country or
by project. And is something that we have already
proved when we combined our strengths with F2i
in Italy in order to bid for Inwit.
market very much. Its a good market in terms of good test and track records for central and northern Thirdly theres always the tool of a capital increase
broadband activity, which means more activity and European markets. but based on the current price of Cellnex shares,
investment from the MNOs and this has implications a rights issue would not be the most efficient from
in terms of densification. TowerXchange: Cellnex has broken new ground the shareholder value perspective. Our view is
in creating a truly cross-border towerco, the that the price of the shares doesnt reflect the
As you know we recently acquired CommsCon in first in Europe. How much more capital can real value of the company. When we talk about
Italy, a powerful and skilled engine for DAS and you deploy before reaching your leverage a capital increase we always have to analyse the
small cells, which means were able to develop small limit? What options are open to you in terms of share price.
cell projects everywhere in Europe. The Netherlands restructuring your balance sheet?
is a very good market for 5G rollout in the future. This is our point of view in terms of the tools for
Its a very attractive market, not as much in size as a Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: First of all, we have long term finance.
TowerXchange: Over the last few years you have
acquired towers both through sale and leasebacks
with operators, and through the acquisition of
smaller towercos; do your future plans favour one
form of acquisition over the other?
Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: Rather than favouring

one over the other, we have a path with clear
milestones. We have three stages the first is to
acquire small towercos or a few assets in a market.
This first platform means we can gain market
knowledge and get familiar with the specificities of
the domestic market.
Secondly, we pursue further growth and

opportunities which allow us to gain size and capture
economies of scale which we can use to share savings
with our customers (this is mainly achieved through
sale and leaseback).
And the third is the consolidation stage, where

we reach the size to create full efficiencies for our
customers and use a tool to do decommissioning and
rationalisation of networks. This was the case in our youre aiming for in this market, or do you successes and plans in this area? How do you
first market in Spain, and has been the case in Italy intend to look further afield? create and manage important relationships with
too, two countries where the three stages have been municipalities?
accomplished. In The Netherlands and in France, we Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: Europe is clearly
are in the second phase. In these, lets say, advanced our main market and remains at the core of our Tobias Martinez, CEO, Cellnex: First of all, let me
stages we mainly opt for MNO transactions, but in business. Were not currently pursuing beyond say that if you benchmark with the U.S. market we
the first stage it can either be small acquisitions from that, maybe we could in future but nowadays were would realise that the U.S. market is more developed
MNOs or small towercos. focused on Europe. than the European one. This is partly due to the
different allocation criteria and use of the available
TowerXchange: To date youve been very TowerXchange: With small cells such a hot spectrum. In Europe densification will take more
focused on Western Europe; do you see ample topic in network infrastructure at the moment, time as market needs and infrastructure deployment
opportunities for Cellnex to achieve the scale can you tell us a little more about Cellnexs and topology are not the same.
The future implications of 5G will require more points of service in
urban areas, this is why we envisage small cells rolling out from 2018
and beyond We dont expect a dramatic change in our P&L in 2017
based upon these new generation networks and infrastructures, but we

do expect it to be more visible from 2018 onwards
Small cells solutions will start to gain their this in all of Europe following consolidation in the
momentum from 2018 onwards. Now we are seeing markets in which we operate.
first approaches and tests and clearly still more
focused on DAS solutions rather than on small Regarding the role of the administrators you
cells. The future implications of 5G will require mention the local one but this is a whole
more points of service in urban areas, this is why ecosystem that requires to be managed. Part of
we envisage small cells rolling out from 2018 and our task in order to become a market leader lies
beyond. Traditional macro cells will continue to in the ability to leverage and our relationships
play their role in the value chain and will improve with different layers of stakeholders, from
their backhauling expanding network transmission the European Commission in Brussels to local
capacity. Small cells wont substitute the current municipalities, covering national as well as
macro-cells, but will become a key component of the regional authorities. Small cells isnt just a
telecom infrastructure setting and the densification relationship between MNOs and Cellnex but with
process needed to cover data transmission demand. municipalities, owners of venues, airports, rail On top of that we need to consider IoT as well and
stations, and other hot spot places where the massive deployments for this, which makes this
To respond to this emerging challenge we took action demand will increase with the 5G rollout. We technology very attractive. And DAS planning and
and decided to acquire CommsCon in Italy, which dont expect a dramatic change in our P&L in 2017 coordination with our customers, asset owners and
has a strong track record in DAS and small cells based upon these new generation networks and local administrators will be an added bonus to our
based networks, to leverage their know-how and infrastructures, but we do expect it to be more existing services and P&L. It will all be a part of the
commercial relationships. Our plan is to replicate visible from 2018 onwards. portfolio of services of towercos like Cellnex
More than the sum of
TowerXchange: Can you introduce EI Towers,
your history and the companys evolution to
its parts
date? How many towers do you own?
Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: EI Towers

is quite a new company, the combination of two
How EI Towers telecoms arm, TowerTel, is achieving impressive growth assets. The first comes from a listed towerco
through best practice in small scale acquisitions in Milan, DMT, which was the first company to
develop the tower business in Italy. It was founded
As the first mobile towerco in Italy, TowerTel has by Alessandro Falciai and started to acquire sites
had to deal with the arrival of two of the biggest in 2003. Between 2003 and 2012 DMT managed to
grow, thanks to acquisitions, up to 1,500 sites, a
European towercos in its market. We spoke to
mix of telecom and broadcast sites, before merging
Carlo Ramella, Chairman at TowerTel, about how with the broadcast towers of Mediaset to create
the company was formed, their growth through EI Towers. Technically speaking it was actually a
acquisition of mom and pop tower portfolios and reverse merger, as a consequence the carved out
their vision for the future of both TowerTel and the part of Mediaset was listed by this transaction.
Italian telecoms market.
So to summarise our evolution; DMT was founded
in 2003 with zero sites, and built its portfolio to
Keywords: 3, 4G, Acquisition, Cellnex. C-Level Perspective,
1,500 sites by 2012, of which 1,300 were broadcast
Deal Structure, Densification, EBITDA, EI Towers, Europe,
and 200 were mobile sites. Mediaset contributed
Hutchison, Iliad, INWIT, Italy, New Market Entrant, about 1,000 broadcast sites to the mix, meaning
Regulation, Roaming, Small Cells, TIM, Towercos, TowerTel, that when the two companies came together to
Urban vs Rural, Vodafone, Wind form EI Towers, the company had a portfolio of
Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel
2,500 sites. The merged company has two different
approaches to the two different segments in which
Read this article to learn: they operate. We maintained the former operating
< How a broadcast towerco can achieve growth in telecoms networks company (called TowerTel) in the mobile sector
< What TowerTel sees as their strengths in a busy market and started to develop this company by acquiring
< An update on the operator landscape in Italy the small mom and pop portfolios from a starting
< How towercos can pursue growth outside of traditional towers point of around 2,300 broadcast sites.
< What Italian regulations mean for tenancy ratios and where they are applied
Since the combination of assets and splitting out

of business units, EI Towers comprises around 580
people, for the most part dedicated to the broadcast
service business (so mostly working for Mediaset
Group and Cairo Group, the new main shareholder
of top Italian newspaper Il corriere della sera).
In the broadcast part of the business we offer a full
service agreement, so we manage not only the tower
but a wide range of services such as maintenance
of equipment, planning the network, coding of the
signal we have 100% control of the broadcast
Since our formation, we have acquired a large number of small
mobile tower portfolios, so today we manage 1,000 mobile sites from
a starting point in 2012 of just 200

service management for the broadcasters.
TowerTel, on the other hand, is mainly a real

estate company. Its a very lean company, just ten agreement with EI Towers. This will add around cities. The taller the tower, the higher number of
people are involved, and all of the activity related 15/16mn in additional revenues, making our tenancies we can achieve.
to maintenance is outsourced to managed service estimated revenue for 2018 around 136mn.
providers. Cellnex and INWIT are national players as
TowerXchange: The Italian tower market has they control around 7,000 and 11,500 towers
Since our formation, we have acquired a large exploded over the last two years, with two new respectively. In this respect we are much more
number of small mobile tower portfolios, so today and significant towercos on the scene (namely flexible, particularly in respect to INWIT, as were
we manage 1,000 mobile sites from a starting point Cellnex and INWIT) - how does TowerTel view independent whereas INWIT is controlled by TIM.
in 2012 of just 200. The number of broadcast sites these changes and what keeps you unique? Mediaset is absolutely independent from any
we have access to remains unchanged but weve operator. INWIT has to share the view of their
added new base stations to broadcast towers on 650 Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: We are strategy with their major shareholder and TIM
sites. So all in all, the mobile business now has 1650 basically different in terms of our equity story. has an important power to decide who to host on
sites available. TowerTel is the sole independent player in the INWITs towers. Cellnex has a master agreement
country, meaning we do not have a master with WIND and has some terms and conditions with
At the moment the mobile sector is seeing a lot of agreement with any of the four operators in the WIND to be respected.
organic growth and the broadcast business is a country. The tenancy ratio of TowerTel is about 1.8
more static sector but two years ago we reached tenants per site, which indicates our independence. In terms of growth, we have been the sole buyer
an agreement with the third national player, Cairo We manage a niche market of 1,650 sites with an of these Mom and Pop towers since 2003; weve
Group, who in 2015 launched the winning tender independent approach. We focus largely on tower gained an expertise in understanding these small
offer for an unallocated broadcast channel and sites due to the fact we can leverage a higher portfolios, we can extract the real value from them.
from 2017 will take advantage of of a full service number of clients compared to on rooftops in the Cellnex and INWIT tried to enter into this sector but
towers may come to market further down the line.

TowerXchange: Italy has stringent regulations
around active equipment. How does this impact
towercos operating in the country and your
The entry of Iliad implies (with the agreement of the European

Competition Authorities) that Three/WIND will pass 5,000 sites plus
some frequencies to Iliad
tenancy ratios?
Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: This has an

impact in particular in urban areas as its about
the number of hours where the population is
exposed to certain emission levels. For sites which
are far from the population the regulations are
less stringent and so this is why were focusing
on rural areas. In Cellnex and INWITs portfolios
found it too time consuming for them to educate Recent news is the merger between Three and Wind about 50% of sites are urban sites and may host a
an internal team of people to do this. Its nice that and the entry of Iliad into the sector. What are the second operator but having three tenants is hard.
we are the sole buyer in this sector, we can buy consequences for us? I would say positive. As soon In these areas, for example, there may be a problem
for 6-9x EBITDA and as we trade at 12x theres a as Wind and Three announced the merger we were in adding 5G technology to the sites as the existing
mathematical equity creation. We have covered worried as the merger would have exposed us to technology uses up all the electromagnetic space on
a lot of the market and estimate we have another a risk of 2.5-3mn if there had been one operator those sites.
two years of activity in acquiring these portfolios fewer in the market. The entry of Iliad implies
ahead. (with the agreement of the European Competition TowerXchange: With European attention turning
Authorities) that Three/WIND will pass 5,000 sites to the potential of rooftops and alternative
TowerXchange: Can you give us a little plus some frequencies to Iliad. Three/WIND had topologies to densify networks, what are
background on the operator situation in Italy? perceived they would have a problem with the TowerTels plans for the evolution of your
As Iliad enter the market, what is your opinion European Authorities and made a deal with Iliad portfolio?
on how their network will be set up? in a preemptive basis. Iliad can select which of the
5000 they want in order to start their operation as Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: In order to
Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: We have four their initial offering will rely on roaming. potentiate the current rooftops, MNOs are trying
MNOs in Italy; Vodafone, TIM, Wind and Three. to deploy a new network of small cells. For us its
Vodafone and TIM have deployed their networks Its early days but the good news is that Iliad have much more difficult to enter this market, you have
in terms of sites and still control these networks. 5,000 sites so they wont rely on competitors for to be closer to the CTO point of view of the mobile
Wind has divested to Cellnex and Three controls roaming. We wont see a sale of those tower assets carrier. INWIT are in the best position for this
their entire network. in less than 18-24 months as they bed in, but those as TIM has to deploy and reinforce their rooftop
coverage. We are much more cautious, we are than mobile at the moment and digitalisation the short to medium term remain acquisition of
still at the door for the small cells, studying the will affect this further, how do you feel about the the small Mom and Pop companies, because of
difference between indoor and outdoor; indoor way EI Towers business is split? the discrepancy in the acquisition multiple and
is more customised as you can select a single we can apply our management strategies to these
project, for example, a shopping centre. Outdoor Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: We dont see assets. With expansion abroad, the synergies on an
needs a strong partnership with an operator and this as risk in the long run. In Italy we have three international scale are very limited. Its hard to see
local authorities which is hard to do without the platforms; the DTT, satellite and fibre platforms with immediate synergy in a network where were not
guarantee of hosting someone. the government having stimulated a big investment present. Were much more cautious on the multiple
in the fibre platform. We manage DTT; linear TV to be paid for assets abroad; we can consolidate in a
Another consideration is also the size of the market. reaches 99% of the population with free content market only if theres a real opportunity.
Indoor site numbers arent as big as has been available. In the future we believe the basic content
discussed. In Italy there arent all that many big of the TV will still pass through our network; news, TowerXchange: You were reportedly interested in
malls with lots of shops, most people still buy in talk shows, reality TV et cetera, and will guarantee bidding for INWIT when they considered bringing
the centre of the city where youre talking about the existence of the network we manage and host. the towers to market. Can you tell us what made
outdoor cells. Its quite easy to contact owners of them appeal to you?
malls but outdoors its difficult as you have to agree We believe that the other platforms are dedicated to
with owner of the building and also the city council. on-demand content; you need to pay not only for the Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: INWIT would
content but to have the connection in the first place, have been a great opportunity for an industrial
In this respect Id like to emphasise that rather than so its a different proposition to DTT broadcasting. operator that is present in the territory, not
focus heavily on small cells weve recently acquired only as due to the number of sites but also their
a company, Nettrotter, with an eye towards IoT. Its Weve also formed a new company, EI Towers relationships with local authorities and maintenance
slightly different from the tower business, we offer Radio, to position ourselves as a full range service operators et cetera. INWIT represented an
a very low bandwidth channel to the potential client provider for the FM radio industry. We pass the opportunity for us as we could operate in a very
that may take advantage of business specific devices current hosting business from 7mn and have efficient way, increasing the top line with new
(relevant for IoT many businesses) that do not need started a small M&A campaign in this area and plan deployment and gaining efficiencies on the cost side.
battery charge for several years. We want to capture to capture around 100 sites to corner this market. We saw potential in combining the two networks;
the first clients entering this sector, for example We are positioning ourselves for the benefit of this whilst obtaining savings from decommissioning
in the application of intelligent metering whereby new entity and the other part of the market. parallel sites is challenging, we felt confident we
water companies monitor levels of water along the would be able to extract value from this in Italy.
network or in healthcare or control logistics around TowerXchange: With towercos increasingly
Europe. looking at multi-country operations, what are Unless the major transactions in Italy disappear for
TowerTels plans for future growth? the time being weve decided to invest in ourselves
TowerXchange: The broadcast industry is developing buyback shares, wed like to buy back 5%
creating significantly less revenue and growth Carlo Ramella, Chairman, TowerTel: Our goals in of the company
Breaking new ground:
TowerXchange: Please introduce HighTel, your
history and your current status as a company.
HighTel Towers move East Nicola Parmeggiani, CEO, HighTel Towers: The
company has actually been operational for 15
Italian towerco HighTel Towers are looking to grow rapidly through years as it was founded in 2001, making it the
oldest towerco in Italy. For the first decade it only
acquisitions in the Balkans
developed around 250 assets in that time, all of
which were in Italy. In 2014 the main shareholder
Despite tracking 44 towercos across Europe and
decided to sell all the towers which had been
the CIS, TowerXchange are still often caught out
developed until that point to EI Towers.
by new entities we didnt know existed. However,
its very rare that were introduced to a towerco
After this we built on past experience to scale up
like HighTel, who boast both a long history in
the company and to expand abroad. HighTel Towers
an established market and whose growth plans is a tower company that is fully integrated along
and success in gaining traction in new markets the value chain and the only tower company in
have gained our attention right away. As well as Italy providing turnkey towers to all MNOs in the
updating our European analyses, we managed to country. I joined the company in 2014 as CEO and
grab a few words with Nicola Parmeggiani, CEO of President, Im also a shareholder in the company
this disruptive Italian tower owner. and very focused on our vision for the future.
My background is in telecoms, having worked for
Keywords: Acquisition, Albania, Anchor Vodafone for five years, and McKinsey prior to that.
Tenant, Build-to-Suit, Co-locations, Country Risk,
Decommissioning, Europe, HighTel Towers, Italy, Once I came on board, we focussed on four
Kosovo, Macedonia, Rooftop, Sale & Leaseback, pillars of the core business: building towers as a
Nicola Parmeggiani, CEO, HighTel Towers Tenancy Ratios turnkey offering for MNOs; the M&A of towers; the
acquisition of the land under the towers of other
tower owners and cross border tower M&A activity.
Read this article to learn: We recently raised 15mn from private equity in
< Who HighTel Towers are and how the company has developed order to support these goals.
< How many towers HighTel owns and where
< How they are planning for growth The Italian market is a very different market to
< Why the Balkans makes such an interesting growth market other parts of Europe. Weve seen a large amount
of sale and leaseback of existing towers which
underpins the market. HighTel focusses on building

our own towers; indeed we not only build but
design, permit, own and manage our own towers.
TowerXchange: Can you tell us how many towers

you own and where they are?
Nicola Parmeggiani, CEO, HighTel Towers: We

We dont have towercos who build in Italy, and thus far have mainly
currently own 300 towers in Italy and 300 in seen just the sale and leasebacks of existing towers. We are the only
Albania.
towerco in Italy who builds their own towers; indeed, we design,
Of our Italian portfolio, around 50% were acquired
from small mom and pop portfolios and the other
50% were built to suit. Our current tenancy ratio
is 1.75 but we are targeting a tenancy ratio of 2.8,
permit, build, own and manage our own towers. This is our niche, and
were doing very well from it

which we believe our business model supports. Our
tenants include Wind, 3, TIM and Vodafone, as well
as non-mobile tenants such as Linkem; our strategy
is only to build a tower once we have interest from towers in Macedonia, Kosovo and Slovenia in the much do you keep in house?
at least two tenants. In order to deploy rapidly, we next 18 months as well. Our aim is to roll up a
begin the permitting phase once the first contract significant number of towers in the Balkans and to Nicola Parmeggiani, CEO, HighTel Towers: HighTel
is signed, so our towers may only have one tenant gain first mover advantage in these markets. As we is very small, with fewer than 20 employees. Our
in the first few months they are operational, but see it, theres currently a huge amount of parallel aim is to manage only core activities internally, so
this should increase to two very quickly. Since infrastructure in these countries which lends things like permitting and acquisition. Everything
other towercos derive from a carve-out of MNOs itself to making significant efficiencies through else, such as engineering and construction et cetera
networks and they expand through M&A, they colocation. In addition, the digitisation of broadcast is outsourced. We use one construction company for
dont tend to have towers suitable for more than television in just rolling out in the Balkans, and we each Italian region.
one tenant. HighTel, on the contrary, has a business can see our tenancy ratios jumping from one to two
model that allows the tenancy ratio to start from 2 very quickly by getting buy-in from the incumbent TowerXchange: Can you tell us about your plans
when the tower is built and reach almost 3 in the broadcasters as well. for growth and your exit strategy?
next 12 months.
TowerXchange: How have you structured the Nicola Parmeggiani, CEO, HighTel Towers: We
Outside of Italy, weve just signed a contract to company? With everything from design and have a three year plan. The intention is to build
acquire 287 towers in Albania, and hope to acquire build to international acquisition going on, how approximately another 100 towers per year and to
acquire another 100 per annum in Italy, excluding
land. In terms of acquiring land, our plans are
much more ambitious, its a 2.5bn market and we See you at our future events!
plan to play a significant role in that.
We also plan to attack all those markets in the

Balkans which do not yet have an existing towerco
and where synergies can increase the tenancy Meetup Meet up
ratio rapidly for example in broadcasting or
consolidation. We are currently looking at Kosovo
and Macedonia as our next target markets.
Europe 2017 Americas 2017
Our feeling is that the market is associating too 4-5 April, 7-8 June,
much risk with the Balkans, where GDP growth
has been stable for many years, inflation is stable,
London Boca Raton
currency is stable (and additionally, our master
lease agreements are in euros) and politically the
situation has been stable for several years. The legal
systems in some Balkan countries are a hangover
from the Mussolini era and are very close to what
were familiar with in Italy, which helps. Of course, Meetup Africa Meetup Asia
there is more risk in the region, but we feel the
risk the markets associate with these countries is
disproportionate.
& ME 2017 2017
Other towercos have tried to tap into this market
3-4 October, 12-13 December,
but dont seem to have had much traction over the
last few years, we have managed to close a deal
Johannesburg Singapore
already and have several more in the pipeline.
Its a new market but our plan is to close down

several Balkan markets within our three year www.towerxchange.com
timeline and then assess the most suitable option
for our portfolio at that time
Gamekeeper turned hunter:
TowerXchange: Please introduce INWIT to our
readers: what was the decision making process
behind forming the company?
how INWIT are providing a Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT: Mobile network
blueprint for tower carve outs operators are separating out their tower businesses
and the number of towers managed by towercos
continues to increase all over the world: the main
With a focus on double digit EBITDA growth and a strong focus on future
reasons behind this trend are focus and total cost of
networks, INWIT are proving that MNO-owned towercos can thrive ownership.
TowerXchange catch up with Oscar Cicchetti, CEO Focus, because MNOs need to concentrate on core
of INWIT, to question him about how INWIT was activities to improve their competitiveness. How
created, how the company is valued and what they manage spectrum, network architecture and
their plans are for the future. What emerged technologies and improving customer relations
was a picture of solid growth, clear vision and is more important than the ownership of towers,
an appetite to be ahead of the curve in terms of inverters, batteries and cooling systems. I like the
preparing their network for 5G rollout. analogy of a car and a driver infrastructure is the
car used by everyone, but the difference is in how
Keywords: 4G, 5G, Anchor Tenant, Carve Out, MNOs drive it!
Co-locations, DAS, Decommissioning, EBITDA,
Editorial, Europe, Europe Insights, INWIT, IPO, Total cost of ownership reduction is key for all the
Infill, Infraco, IoT, Italy, LTE, MNOs, Market MNOs and telcos because they have to continue
Overview, Regulation, Small Cells, TIM, Tenancy to invest in networks to deliver ultrabroadband
Ratios, Towercos, Valuation and deal with competitive pressure and growing
difficulties in so called data monetisation. The
only way to deal with this is sharing whatever is not
Read this article to learn: directly related to their competitive edge and tower
< How and why INWIT was formed sharing and outsourcing is perceived as a valid way
< How they prepared for and managed a successful IPO to save capex and opex.
< What INWIT has done to secure their position as a leading European towerco
< INWITs take on the Italian tower market Bearing that in mind, its not surprising that TIM, in
< How INWIT are preparing for 5G rollout line with this trend, decided to carve out and sell a
minority share of its tower asset.

TowerXchange: What process did you go through
to get from operator-owned assets to IPO?
Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT: TIMs decision was

based on the drivers Ive already mentioned: a more
focused organisation to manage the infrastructure
business, a release of capital from the sale, and How they manage spectrum, network architecture and technologies
a higher visibility of the tower asset on the TIM
and improving customer relations is more important than the
balance sheet.
I do believe that all those objectives have been

achieved: the IPO has been successful (TIM obtained
roughly 900mn for 40% of the INWIT shares, with
ownership of towers, inverters, batteries and cooling systems. I like
the analogy of a car and a driver infrastructure is the car used by
everyone, but the difference is in how MNOs drive it!

a demand that was higher than eight times the
offer); INWIT is recognised as a relevant asset on the
TIM balance sheet (mid-teens EV/EBITDA multiple
which compares with the mid-single-digit typical of
the telco space) and, more importantly, the business youve created a valuable asset and become a key INWIT has long term contracts with high quality
focus is delivering better than expected results. player in the Italian market - what are the key customers; in our client portfolio we have all the
values and unique selling points which have led Italian mobile operators, all of whom have long
A few months after the IPO, TIM decided to to INWITs success? term contracts. In particular with TIM, which
look for potential buyers for the majority stake accounts for about 80% to our revenues, we have a
but this process didnt come to a conclusion. Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT: I see four key value 24 year contract.
Without entering in decisions that belong to the drivers in our equity story: quality of the asset,
shareholders, I want to highlight that the value visibility on revenues, protection against inflation/ Moreover, the passive infrastructure business is
of the asset was not fully evident. As a matter of deflation and new business opportunities. not only characterised by high visibility on the
fact, the business acceleration methods which are revenues and high barriers to entry, but also by a
allowing us to have low teens growth were not The market recognises that we have a very high full protection against inflation and interest rates:
yet known and factored in the price, as well as quality asset. When it comes to towers its hard to the revenues we receive are linked to inflation.
many additional opportunities like the potential set qualitative benchmarks, but the tenancy ratio is And we even trade on this, because the majority
electromagnetic threshold increase or the upside often a proof of how much the customers value the of the revenues are 100% linked to CPI, while the
that could come from the consolidation in the assets over others. And our tenancy ratio is 1.7x, the costs are only 75% linked. This means that every
Italian tower market. highest in Italy. Its also worth mentioning that over percentage point of inflation increase translates
60% of our sites have access to fibre backhaul which into more than a percentage point in terms of both
TowerXchange: Over a year on from your IPO is a relevant value in the Italian market. EBITDA and net income.
the same amount of antennas with a lower volume

of towers, which will mean a similar amount of
revenue and lower amount of opex.
TowerXchange: With the merger between

Hutchison and Wind, how do you see the tower
market changing in future?
The merger of Hutchison and Wind should translate into an another
Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT: The merger of
portfolio of towers that could come into the towerco space. Were
interested in buying this asset and benefiting from the synergies
between the two portfolios of towers
Hutchison and Wind should translate into an
another portfolio of towers that could come into
the towerco space, if they confirm their willingness
to sell some of their towers. Obviously well try
to have an active role in this. Were interested in
buying this asset and benefiting from the synergies
between the two portfolios of towers.
Also in terms of interest rates we are neutral, regulations on electromagnetic load are updated. In terms of timing, I assume that in the short term,
because our debt is completely subscribed at fixed All the towers have been built up by the MNOs the combined entity will be initially focused on
rate. under pressure to cover the most populated areas merging the two networks and the two customer
and this created a significant overlap and room for bases and then will potentially look for a sale and
Last and absolutely not least: new business, which optimisation. leaseback transaction.
means small cells and backhaul, that will be the
main source of the growth in a medium/long term On the other hand the growth of data volumes and TowerXchange: In a market with three
perspective. performances and the consequent deployment ambitious towercos, how do you see INWIT
of the new mobile technologies will demand a developing? What are your plans and goals for
TowerXchange: Can you give us a little color on densification of the Radio Access Nodes. growth?
the Italian market in general? How has telecoms
and network coverage developed there? All in all, towercos can play a pivotal role in Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT: First of all, let me
managing the decommissioning and in offering highlight that our organic plan foresees a low
Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT: In Italy we have traditional as well as innovative build to suit towers teens EBITDA growth. And this is a relevant
more than 45,000 towers with a low tenancy to the MNOs. perspective, considering we will maintain the
ratio compared to other countries (for the overall typical low risk profile of our industry. This result
market the tenancy ratio is below 1.5x). This means Let me just remark that decommissioning is a does not consider any in-organic option, which will
theres room for efficiencies, particularly when the positive value driver in this space, because it implies provide further upside to our planned growth.

Roughly half of the low teens growth comes from
the so-called risk-free actions like escalators
on revenues, contracted tenancy increases and
contracted efficiencies derived from dismantling
sites.
All the network architects currently think that the amount of small
Moreover we will benefit of the wave of investment
we have already committed to at the beginning of
the year and which we increased in June, taking
into account the commercial results and a new plan
cells required in a fully deployed 5G architecture will be ten times
the number of the traditional macro cells. In the Italian market this
translate into a demand of roughly 600,000 tenants

from our main customer.
To go into more detail: we decided to double the

number of new sites (from 250 to 500), to accelerate connections (billions instead of millions). 5G architecture will be ten times the number of
the small cells plan (from 1,000 to 4,000 remote the traditional macro cells. In the Italian market
units) and to enter into the backhauling market, From an industrial standpoint the expected this translate into a demand of roughly 600,000
which will be an additional revenue stream for us. performance should trigger different use cases tenants.
(virtual reality, fixed mobile substitution, connected
Its worth mentioning we adopted a strict policy to cars, Internet of Things, et cetera) The growth of these small cells is just taking
get a double digit return for each euro we invest off now and creates a very concrete business
in growing the business. 5G will require several challenging technological opportunity for the towercos.
improvements (i.e. intensive MIMO and carrier
TowerXchange: Theres a lot of talk of 5G and aggregation, active and beam forming antennas, Each MNO will deploy and use its own small cells
futureproofing networks at the moment, what cloud RAN), new and relevant spectrum resources but we do believe that a relevant portion will be
are INWITs plans in this regard? (beyond 3 GHz) and a completely different network shared among operators and managed by neutral
topology (including the intensive use of small cells). hosts. In order to capture both needs, we offer
Oscar Cicchetti, CEO, INWIT: 4G has been the a turnkey solution for exclusive LTE small cells
first data native mobile data network and Small cells, which are an important network and Distributed Antenna Systems to be shared
its deployment is supporting the growth of component in the 4G environment, will play a between operators.
mobile internet everywhere. 5G is a new deep crucial role in the 5G framework in order to handle
transformation that has been conceived as a radical the very high frequencies that will be used and to Finally, if you consider that we own roughly
improvement of the performances in terms of deliver the low latency required in some use cases. 11,000 macro towers and there is a potential for
throughput (10 Gbit/sec compared with the 100 600,000 small cell tenants, even capturing a small
Mbit/sec of 4G), latency (1 millisecond compared All the network architects currently think that the percentage of this market could be a great upside
to the current 15/20 millisecond) and number of amount of small cells required in a fully deployed for us
Aggregating a broader
There are only 24,459 telecom towers yet 62,764
points of presence in France (source: ANFR, 2016).
The balance is made up of rooftops, public and
typology of assets transport structures, water towers, church spires.

The situation is not unique to France: only 16,532
How recently acquired FPS Towers looks beyond towers to enlarge their of Germanys 70,136 cell sites are ground based
portfolio of sites towers, and only 42,700 of 117,700 in Russia. Thus,
innovative towercos are looking to alternate site
FPS Towers, recently acquired by American Tower typologies beyond ground based towers (GBTs) to
for 697mn(read more earlier in this edition of the deepen their offering to customers.
journal) exemplify the broader vision of cell site

FPS Towers is an aggregator of the market: not
leasing which may be necessary to drive competitive
only towers and rooftops, but a broad typology of
advantage in European towers. In September 2016, assets on which one can mount a mobile antenna,
FPS announced that they had reached an agreement said Cedric Lepolard, CFO of FPS Towers. We
to lease-up 76,500 towers owned by RTE, a subsidiary want to enlarge our offer in order to support their
of French power producer EDF. This portfolio networks.
supplements the 20,000 rooftops FPS markets and FPSs
Our strategy is to develop a variety of propositions
core portfolio of 2,500 ground based towers.
to meet the needs of the owners of all kinds of
assets. We have launched three initial programmes:
Keywords: American Tower, Business Model, Co-
one focused on public infrastructure, another for
locations, Europe, Europe Insights, FPS Towers, France,
building owners, and a third programme focusing
Germany, Infrastructure Sharing, Leasing & Permitting,
on large portfolio owners like RTE and APRR,
Masts & Towers, Network Rollout, Russia, Stakeholder continued Cedric Lepolard. We address the whole
By Kieron Osmotherly, Founder & CEO, TowerXchange
Buy-In, Towercos, UK, Valuation of the market through a variety of legal models
with always a view to securing a long term hosting
proposal for our customers. So its an extension of
the towerco business model to secure predictable
< The typology of cell site networks in France, Germany and Russia
cash flows over 10-20 year periods.
< How bringing alternate cell sites to market can affect the competitive landscape
< The benefits for MNOs and governments of professionalizing the management of an alternative
The recent agreement between FPS Towers and
typology of cell sites
RTE exemplifies this approach. A subsidiary of
< The challenge of valuing alternate site typologies
French power producer EDF, RTE has approximately
380,000 high sites with very good coverage across Usage of alternate site typologies in Europe
France. Through a first analysis 76,500 sites in the
RTE portfolio are appropriate for radio transmission,
with easy access and the potential to be made Russia
available by FPS for immediate co-location.
Germany
France 42,700
Competitive differentiator
16,532
The French tower market developed rationally and 24,459
with minimal parallel infrastructure.
All players built their own networks one after
the others by using existing infrastructure where
possible. As a result, relatively few French cell sites
are in overlapping locations until now. 46,959 70,136 117,700
FPS Towers deal with RTE enables the towerco

to offer ready-to-use sites in attractive locations
at a competitive price point they claim compares
favorably with other existing solutions or future GBTs
needs. The 76,500 RTE towers represent twice as
many towers as the four French mobile operators Total sites
Another example from FPS: highway
structures the APRR deal Sources: TowerXchange Research, RBC Capital Markets, ANFR, FPS Towers
FPS Towers also recently secured 300 structures

and two French towercos (TDF and FPS) combined! Applying this approach to other tower markets
along French highways from APRR in a 20 year
agreement which gives FPS the same rights as a
American Tower owned FPS could offer these new MNOs all over the world use any suitable high site
site owner.
sites to accelerate FREE Mobiles network rollout when rolling out their networks: its faster and often
Even though FPS had to outbid their competitors in rural and exurban areas (around 3,000 sites still cheaper than building a new site. But such sites
to secure the deal, it still came at a value need to be deployed), enable all Frances MNOs to are typically owned and managed by a fragmented
significantly less than the premium currently meet the new coverage constraints agreed upon ecosystem of private and public landlords, not by
being paid for European GBTs during the allocation of 700MHz frequencies, and telecom real estate professionals, so commercial
help accelerate the deployment of IoT networks. terms and access can be unpredictable.

In France there are over 20,000 high sites owned by
third party landlords, there are thousands of water
towers with telecom tenants like in the UK and Spain
- there are significant quantities of alternate high
sites in other tower markets in Europe and beyond.
There is an opportunity for towercos to painstakingly There is an opportunity for towercos to painstakingly build databases
build databases of current and prospective high sites,
of current and prospective high sites, to design a range of compelling
to design a range of compelling contract models and
commercial propositions to meet the needs of these
site owners, and to gradually rollup a significant
portfolio of alternate cell sites.
contract models and commercial propositions to meet the needs of
these site owners, and to gradually rollup a significant portfolio of
alternate cell sites

Its time for towercos to invest time to make an
alternate typology of sites available on a turnkey,
responsive, professional basis
Valuing alternate site typologies
Whether a cell site is a ground based tower, a benchmarks also come from deals to acquire 65-75% of European cell sites are alternate site
rooftop, a water tower or an electricity pylon, GBTs in the US, Africa and Asia where there are typologies, not GBTs, including the majority
the valuation model is consistent: what is the simply more GBTs in the network as a function of sites in high density urban locations. But if
contractual return, what is the contract term, of available empty acreage. these rooftops and other urban sites can be co-
and what is the prospective growth rate? located to a reasonably high tenancy ratio, who
The sheer population density in European cares about typology? Any cash flow counts,
However the challenge in valuing alternate site urban areas in particular the suburban sprawl even if we have to stop calling it Tower Cash
typologies remains the lack of benchmarks. spilling into mixed use areas that can utilise Flow!
Most transaction benchmarks come from every square foot of real estate, means there
deals to acquire GBTs from MNOs, which often isnt an opportunity to build a GBT. It seems a tower is not always a tower in
typically offer greater structural capacity Europe. And a rooftop may be worth more
and greater surety of ground rent costs and TowerXchange have not yet completed a pan- than a tower. But valuation benchmarks
access compared to a rooftop. Most transaction Continental study, but we would estimate that remain few and far between
4G rollout and broadcast synergies
TowerXchange: Please introduce TDF for readers
less familiar with the European telecom and
in the French tower market

broadcast tower landscape.
Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF: We are the largest

An interview with leading infrastructure provider, TDF
independent provider of telecoms infrastructure
solutions, television and radio broadcast networks
TDF, the French broadcast company own and operate a
and media platforms in France. We provide
portfolio 6,500 ground based towers in France with commercial mission-critical services for MNOs telecom
agreements in place covering an additional 3,000 rooftops. equipment site hosting and for digital and analogue
As Frances largest telecoms infrastructure provider, TDF TV and digital radio.
hosts 8,500 PoPs putting its market share at 14%. Refinanced
in March 2015, its shareholders now comprise Brookfield We serve all four French MNOs - Orange, SFR-
Infrastructure Group, Public Sector Pension Investment Board, Numericable, Bouygues Telecom and Free - and
APG Asset Management, Arcus Infrastructure Partners and French leading media - TF1, M6 Group, France
Televisions, Canal+, NextRadioTV et cetera - backed
Credit Agricole Assurances. In this interview TDF CEO, Olivier
by a unique chain of high-quality connected sites,
Huart discusses his thoughts on where growth opportunities lie
Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF
with highly attractive locations and outstanding
in the French market.
territorial coverage: our DTT network covers over
97% of the French population. As at September
Keywords: 3G, 4G, Active Infrasharing, Arcus Infrastructure Partners, Best of TowerXchange, Bouygues 2015, we owned and operated over 6,500 active
Telecom, Brookfield, C-Level Perspective, Capacity Enhancements, Co-locations, DAS, Debt Finance, sites in mainland France, approximately 300 sites
Densification, Europe, Europe Insights, Finland, France, Free Mobile, Germany, Hungary, Infrastructure in French overseas territories and have signed
Sharing, Insights, Investors, LTE, Market Forecasts, Market Overview, Masts & Towers, MNOs, Network Rollout, commercial agreements covering up to 3,000
Netherlands, New Market Entrant, NOC, Opex Reduction, Orange, Regulation, Rooftop, SFR Numericable, Site additional rooftops in France. We own around 90%
Level Profitability, SLA, Small Cells, Spain, Tenancy Ratios, Tower Count, Towercos, Urban vs Rural of our active towers and we either own or lease the
land for our sites under long-term contracts.
Read this article to learn: In addition, we own 5,000 km of optical fibre, a high
< The size of TDFs infrastructure portfolio and how TV, radio and telecoms contribute to their revenues capacity national backbone which interconnects
< Factors affecting the growth of the French telecoms market including the shortening of Frees network sites, our four data centers and our online
sharing agreement with Orange, the appetite for small cells and DAS, and the rollout of 4G and 5G video platforms. This network is used by all our
< How TDF have created synergies between their broadcast and telecoms businesses businesses.
< TDFs strategy for the HetNet and Internet of Things
On March 31, 2015, an investor consortium -

Brookfield Infrastructure Group, Public Sector In France, 4G coverage obligations (laid down under
Pension Investment Board, APG Asset Management the licence awarded by the French Regulatory
N.V., Arcus Infrastructure Partners, and Credit Authority ARCEP) are more stringent than
Agricole Assurances through its subsidiary Predica 2G/3G coverage obligations and require further
- bought TDF. These new shareholders are backed infrastructure in addition to the current network.
by large, well-established infrastructure platforms With more than 8,500 PoPs The 800MHz licence requires the MNO to cover
which employ conservative, investment-grade
capital structures, and have a very long-term
investment horizon.
hosted on TDFs towers and
rooftops, our market share
exceeds 14%
99.6% of the population and 90% of non-urban
regions in each French dpartement (French
county) which exceeds the MNOs current 2G/3G
coverage. The recently awarded 700MHz licence
TowerXchange: What have been the drivers even tightens these obligations: 95% in each
behind TDF restructuring to focus on your dpartement, 97.7% in each priority rollout
domestic business in France? area, 90% along national railways and 80% along
interview was conducted]: 14,200 towers provided regional lines.
Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF: Before TDF was taken by MNOs, 27,300 outsourced towers and 18,600
over in April 2015, its debt was very high. As a rooftops and other structures. Competition also drives growth.Free, the fourth
result, in order to cut debt, we decided to sell MNO, is racing to catch up to the coverage of the
off our businesses abroad including those in With more than 8,500 PoPs hosted on TDFs towers others. SFR will probably seek to compete on service
the Netherlands, Finland, Spain, Hungary and and rooftops, our market share exceeds 14%. quality with Orange, especially in non-urban areas
Germany. We also provide site hosting services to where recent studies showed Orange still has a lead.
governmental and public operators, such as Furthermore, focus is increasingly turning to indoor
TowerXchange: Can you give us an idea of how the French Ministry of Interior (police forces, coverage, which requires both concentrated sites
the French tower market breaks down? How firemen), the French Ministry of Defence, blue-chip and new solutions, like small cells, DAS and other
many towers are there in France and what role companies and machine-to-machine operators. IBS.
does TDFs portfolio play in the market?
TowerXchange: What trends determine the Development of4Gand later5G (very high speed
Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF: As of December 2015 the potential growth of the French tower industry? mobile)will require networks to be re-architected
four French MNOs are estimated to have 60,000 Is there a lot of demand for new towers and high around many more antennae with systematic fibre-
PoPs (Points of presence), located on approximately points as a result of 4G? optic threads connecting all radiostations.Very
40,000 different sites including towers, rooftops high speed mobile networks will converge withvery
and other structures (e.g. water towers, churches et Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF: We believe that the telecom high speed fixed networks.Our telecom operator
cetera), as well as sites that MNOs own. site hosting markets growth will be driven by customers will have to invest, and we will be
urban PoPs (rooftops, indoor sites), new roll-outs focussed on delivering not only optical fibre
These PoPs break down as follows [prior to the (IoT, 5G) and additional coverage (non-urban areas, connected towers but also FTTH rollout solutions to
recent Bouygues tower sale announced after the black spots, motorways, railways). help them meet their coverage commitments.

requirements where continuity of service is an
essential criterion. TDF as an NOC operator is very
well placed to provide hosting and transmission
services to satisfy requirements for the telecoms
If we consider the occupancy
Meetup
industry and operate both mobile and fixed very
high speed networks.
ratio on our towers, this
ratio is equal to 2.9 in the
telecom market, and exceeds
TowerXchange: What is TDFs strategy in terms
of HetNet solutions and Internet of Things?
Europe 2017
5 if we include TV, radio and Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF: TDF has been involved 4-5 April, Business Design
telecom markets from the very outset in the rollout of M2M
Centre, London
networks. Several players in France have developed
turnkey solutions meeting the needs of companies
TowerXchange: How would you describe and local authorities. We have no preferred
synergies between the management of broadcast technology and our customers can access all
and telecom towers? our sites. We help them deploy their nationwide
network rapidly. Those M2M customers include
Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF: At present, telecoms Orange, Bouygues Telecom, Sigfox, M2OCity and
accounts for some 40% of our revenues. Among our Qowisio.
6,500 active sites in France (an active site means
a site with at least one tenant or hosted activity), TowerXchange: How do you view TDF and the
28% of sites are shared between at least two of French tower industry in the future?
TDFs three businesses (TV, Radio, Telecom). If we
consider the occupancy ratio on our towers (i.e. no. Olivier Huart, CEO, TDF: We forecast that the French
of PoPs over number of active towers),this ratio is tower market will continue to grow on the back of
equal to 2.9 in the telecom market, and exceeds five increased demand for urban sites (in particular
if we include TV, radio and telecom markets. rooftops), indoor coverage and outdoor coverage
Using our sites for all three of our businesses results needs (in particular transport corridors, touristic
in cost synergies (e.g. power, maintenance, design, zones, and black spots). And at a later stage 5G
radio planning et cetera), that ultimately benefit might also require more sites. TDF is improving
A unique networking opportunity with 200 leaders of the
customers. its sites portfolio to address those needs on a daily European telecom and broadcast tower industry
basis. We are also ready to play an active role in any
Over the last 40 years TDF has partnered with TV market consolidation and do look at opportunities www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe
and radio operators under very demanding service beyond France
Service-Telecom: TowerXchange: Please introduce Service-Telecom
and how the company has evolved.
A towering ambition Nikolay Berdin, CEO, Service-Telecom: We started

operations in 2015 with the specific aim of becoming
Founded only two years ago, Service-Telecom has major plans to shake up one of the leading national independent telecom
the Russian tower industry tower infrastructure companies in Russia. We
started from scratch with a structured business
model, looked at international markets for
Russia has huge untapped potential for tower
reference, and came to the conclusion it was time to
infrastructure it has millions of mobile
start with a BTS model in Russia. All four MNOs in
subscribers that are consuming data on platforms
Russia work with independent towercos to develop
like WhatsApp, Facebook and Skype at an
their networks.
increasingly rapid pace. Nikolay Berdin, CEO
of independent telecom tower infrastructure
The top three Russian bank came on board as a
company Service-Telecom, explains why the
strategic partner, and once we were fully funded,
company is seeking to expand its operations we started construction. We secured contracts with
from Moscow into the whole of Russia. He also Megafon and Tele2, and then started on construction
outlines the reasons why MNOs are partnering at the end 2015. Just over one year, we have built
with towercos and transferring ownership of 350 sites plus we have more than 100 in the pipeline
their assets to third parties, and talks about under consruction, and we expect to expand our
how the Russian government is supporting the portfolio via M&A. As the results, we aim to have
development of the towerco industry. approximately 1,000 towers in place by the end of
1Q 2017.
Keywords: BTS, Russia, MNOs, towercos,
rooftop, 5G, small cells, Service Telecom We referred to international experience, and we
Nikolay Berdin, CEO, Service-Telecom
agree that there are two ways for us to develop -
organic growth through build to suit and inorganic
growth through M&A. In the companys early days,
we explored M&A options in the Russian market and
< How Service-Telecom is planning to consolidate the tower infrastructure market in Russia
potential tower sales from VimpelCom, Tele2 and
< Why MNOs are joining forces with tower companies in Russia to develop infrastructure
Megafon.
< What Service-Telecom is doing to support the development of small cell technology in Russia
< How the Russian government is making life easier for tower companies
As you know, Russia is a huge country, with over 20

million people in the Moscow area alone. Moscow
is our home region, but from the first year of our
existence we embarked on an ambitious regional
expansion. We are talking about Russia from St
Petersburg to the Urals, focusing now on the hottest
markets, which include St Petersburg, Sochi and
Krasnodar, the Volga region and the Urals. But we
are under no illusion that this will be easy other
Russian tower companies and local incumbents are
active in these regions. Our strategy is to grow into
a national player and develop a strong reputation in
We are expanding in number of regions from St. Petersburg to Urals.
But we are under no illusion that this will be easy other Russian tower
companies and local incumbents are active in these regions

our market.
In spite of this, we are very pleased with the

progress we have made this year. At the start of of the current tower market in Russia? For in a challenging economic environment they still
2017, the MNOs started to announce their annual example, the split between MNO-owned, MNO need to invest funds into network expansion. An
plans and place more orders with us compared to carve outs and independent towercos. How do opportunity to fund the CAPEX with the help from
last year. these players all relate to one another currently? independent towercos became a valid option to
have.
In terms of organic growth, we have earned Nikolay Berdin, CEO, Service-Telecom: We believe
credibility with MNOs in the Moscow region. that the Russian market has huge potential for tower There are four MNOs in the Russian market. Tele2,
At the same time, we are looking at additional infrastructure; it may be one of the biggest markets is aggressively growing and successfully entered
opportunities on the markets like M&As and JVs and for tower infrastructure in Europe. The country the Moscow region a year ago. Vertical and Russian
everything which can help us to grow further. has more than 250 million subscribers and at Towers helped them to grow and establish a network
present people are migrating to data at a huge pace in Moscow a good example of how the company
TowerXchange: Are you only focused on Russia? everyone uses Skype, WhatsApp and Facebook. successfully launched in the hottest city and largest
Russia has a lot of big cities with populations of over market in the country. There is the same level of
Nikolay Berdin, CEO, Service-Telecom: Weve only a million people, each creating high levels of traffic demand from other large cities all over the country.
just started so it is way too early to say. We are and high requirements for data. This was one of the reasons why St Petersburg was
definitely interested in serving the Commonwealth our first priority after Moscow, and we plan to grow
of Independent States (CIS), but our focus for now is In the quest to keep pace in the past MNOs wanted from there with MNOs constructing their network.
on Russia and we see it as a very interesting market. to do everything themselves, concerned about
keeping their market share, they have however now In the case of MNO-owned towercos, these
TowerXchange: Can you summarise your opinion started to consider independent towercos. Now, companies usually accumulate assets and dont play
an active role in the tower segment. For example,

Megafon has very different ambitions to VimpelCom.
VimpelCom set up a towerco for a carve-out; rumours
say that theyre quite close to the end of the process.
Megafon is more conservative, looking at market
opportunities, and itis still not very active in terms of
selling their towers. They are probably preparing for MNOs used to keep the pace and do everything possible to keep their
a carve-out or JV or something else. I expect theyll
be ready close to the middle of the year.
market share. They have now started to consider independent towercos
from another perspective. Now, in a challenging economic environment
TowerXchange: In our conversations with
Western European towercos, small cells and 5G
rollout is a really hot topic. Can you give us any
insight as to how close Russia is to 5G rollout and
what the small cells/densification needs will be in
they still need to invest funds into network expansion. Opportunities to
fund the CAPEX with the help of independent towercos became a valid
option to have

Russia over the next few years?
Nikolay Berdin, CEO, Service-Telecom: I believe that

all MNOs are deeply involved. Megafon and MTS Small cells became a hot topic two years ago with Nikolay Berdin, CEO, Service-Telecom: Certain
have already announced trials with Huawei and Moscow having become the place where were initiatives are likely to lead to the growth of the
Ericsson. Next year we have the World Cup and the trialled. There is still a demand for macro sites of towerco market, one of the most important ones
trials will be introduced during the championship. 40m plus, but in towns its switched to small cells being the removal of the requirement to obtain a
In terms of network coverage, we dont see much and steel poles 15m to 30m high. MNOs are also building permit for certain types of telecom towers.
activity associated with this; its far too early for testing indoor technologies and with independent
This has been introduced in a number of regions,
Russia. We asked several questions to technical towercos its developing more rapidly.
including Moscow and St. Petersburg and regionand
heads, they have pilot projects, but are still in testing As a company, our focus mainly on small cells. We
as such, you can now construct a tower in those
mode. are putting in street poles 20 to 30m high which can
areas with fewer bureaucratic procedures. This
share two to three small cell tenants and providing
We do believe that there is a lot of potential in LTE, different solutions around that. really helped to develop the market in the Moscow
and MNOs continue to build these networks. They region. Its not the case for every region in Russia
have started to introduce LTE Advanced in Moscow TowerXchange: What can you tell us about though, some regions are trying to do the same and
and a number of cities across the country, which government initiatives in terms of Russian others are lagging behind - we have also heard of
allows consumers to browse the Internet at a speed telecoms infrastructure? Is there anything in instances where MNOs have struggling with the
from 150 to 450 Megabytes per second. particular which is driving or inhibiting growth? speed of network development
Small Cells
Towercos are increasingly looking for opportunities to diversify
their service offerings to MNOs, and distributed networks
are becoming more and more necessary in urban network
densification in advance of 5G. Top of the list of options is
small cells and DAS. But who will be the neutral host? How
proven are the business models for small cells as a service? Do
towercos have a role in indoor network densification? Who
are the main stakeholders within municipalities and how can
new relationships be forged? Can multi-operator small cell
solutions offer a more efficient alternative to DAS solutions, and is
spectrum sharing a possibility? In this small cells special edition,
TowerXchange unites passive and active infrastructure owners to
provide an overview of the opportunities for towercos.
132 Back to the future - Ericsson on 5G

134 The knowns and unknowns of 5G roll out
137 Analysys Mason on 5G deployments
141 Vodafones small cells strategy
154 Multi-operator small cells; interviews with ip.access,
Spidercloud Wireless, Huawei and Commscope
Image courtesy of VPC
Back to the future
TowerXchange: Whats your vision for 2020?
Where do you think we will be with 4G/LTE+/5G
rollouts?
A macro-level summary of how 5G, IoT and new technologies will affect the
shape of telecom infrastructure Ezio Zerbini, GCU Telecom Italia CTO, Ericsson:
Ericssons vision is that in 2020, society will start to
As one of the leading players in the become fully networked with connectivity not only
5G technology arms race currently on mobiles and devices but appliances at home
underway, Ericsson have a unique too. 2020 will be a time of 5G, Internet of Things
perspective on the potential of the and everything Cloud.
5G
next generation of telecoms and how
it will be rolled out. TowerXchange In the context of this trend, we see 5G as the true
picked the brains of Ezio Zerbini, enabler for industrial transformation; think, for
a vastly experienced CTO within example, of new manufacturing capabilities which
Ericssons Italian telecoms unit, about would be enabled by networked robotics, and
how he sees this new technology which are not possible with todays technologies.
rolling out, and what it means for
tower owners. One of the highlights of 5G is the decrease of
latency, as some of these new applications require
Keywords: 3G, 4G, 5G, Capex, DAS, a latency below 10 milliseconds. This is the magic
EBITDA, Ericsson, Europe, IBS, threshold where a robot, a car or an application
Infrastructure Sharing, Investment, can be comparable and as reliable to a
IoT, LTE, Market Forecasts, Market human. We think that 2020 will be just the first
Overview, New License, Regulation, rollout of machine type communications critical
Small Cells, Urban vs Rural, Valuation, applications, but this will eventually move to
Whos Who consumer markets too, such as robots at home for
domestic activities.
Read this article to learn: For the first time, the new generation of technology
< The vision for 5G 2020 and beyond will not render the previous one redundant,
< Potential applications for 5G, both in the near and long term so 4G will remain and the new generation will
< How well current network topology will serve future needs incorporate the previous one completely. Capacity
will migrate onto the new 5G network but the
< The stakeholder mix and how it will change over the next few years
nervous system will remain on 4G. 5G will be
< What towercos need to do now to prepare for 5G rollout
mostly implemented using small cells in between
existing 4G systems. Towercos will play a big role challenge due to the fragmented market and lack of will be successful, and the more you can cooperate
in running 4G networks and 5G small cells too. I scale. the more relevant your capability will be.
believe much of the 5G rollout will be managed
by other business entities rather than operators: 5G will be a boost of existing service and will cover TowerXchange: How will towercos need to adapt
towercos, private companies and so on. some areas as a high capacity and low latency to meet the changing needs of their clients?
network. But only in some selected areas, it wont
Another application that will come later but will be continuous coverage. It will completely change Ezio Zerbini, GCU Telecom Italia CTO, Ericsson:
be improved is fixed wireless access; mobile the networks and infrastructure so towercos need They need to acquire assets, make joint ventures
networks will have capacity to compete with indoor to be smart and get the right assets in place as soon and have a multi-operator approach. Operators
fibre wiring. FTTB structure will be the main as possible. today need to have complete and dense coverage
infrastructure, meanwhile 5G will cope with the of 4G systems. It will be the nervous system of the
offering of indoor wiring type solutions. Theres a TowerXchange: What are the challenges which future. Fibre assets need to be acquired as most of
battle between fibre and WiFi that will be solved operators and towercos face in current small the fibre assets are already in place, theres no room
by 5G; 5G small cells are a hybrid indoor/outdoor cell deployments? Do you see these challenges to roll out much more.
solution able to cope with the last 100m of the last getting easier or more complex as time goes on?
mile. Governments need to understand that areas not
Ezio Zerbini, GCU Telecom Italia CTO, Ericsson: You covered by 5G will lose all relevance from an
5G also has the advantage to ensure zero time to need to get assets. Close the discussions, get assets industrial point of view, so they need to push the
market as soon as you subscribe in the shop your every day. different stakeholders to accelerate it.
service can be switched on immediately.
TowerXchange: Could you give us an overview 5G is based on technologies that were developed in
TowerXchange: How do you see small cells being of the stakeholders who will need to work military applications. I am referring to phase array
deployed currently? Do you think operators together for 5G rollout? How do you see their radars, they can focus microwave beams onto a
and towercos are giving sufficient headroom to relationships changing over time? target, they can move or rotate the beam and follow
planning for future networks in their current the target without any mechanical movement.
rollouts? Ezio Zerbini, GCU Telecom Italia CTO, Ericsson: Using the beam technology, you can concentrate the
Stakeholders are the towercos, operators and RF power and you can go through walls and cross
Ezio Zerbini, GCU Telecom Italia CTO, Ericsson: municipalities, so they can share opex and the in-building loss which today is a barrier to use
I think more capabilities and people need to be negotiate. Of course this is a skill set towercos are high-frequency spectrum. You can use spectrum
dedicated to network planning. Operators need to used to employing. you cant use at all today. The other key point is the
replicate the clusters without reinventing the wheel size of antennae. 5G is a technology which enables
every time; things are so complex in this business so The relationship will change completely. The higher spectrum bands for mobile applications
you need to have blueprint replication capabilities. focus will no longer be on business to business and increase the bandwidth. The plan is to disguise
Some operators in the US and Asia have started relationships but on strategic partnership relations. these antennae in streetlamps and you wont even
to adapt to this reality, but in Europe its still a 5G will force cooperation. Any kind of cooperation see them
The knowns and unknowns
TowerXchange: What is Arqivas understanding
of 5G, what will it look like and when will it be
about 5G rollout
rolled out in the Europe?
Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms and

Arqivas Nicolas Ott explains how the telecoms sector is set to see a radical shakeup M2M, Arqiva: There is currently a lot of work being
done in Europe, Asia and the USA in regards to 5G,
Mobile phones have come a long way since the 2G days of plain although it seems a lot of companies are going for
voice and txtspk. Two successive generations of technology a later timetable than was initially anticipated. We
have revolutionised the way we interact with our phones, with will see 4.5G or 4.9G rolled out probably around
content and with the world around us. However, as the dawn of 2019/2020 (or maybe 2018 for ambitious MNOs) and
5G breaks first light on the horizon, it seems this next generation then from 2020 to 2024 therell be a significant take
will create the biggest changes of all. Theres only one problem up of full 5G. In terms of how big of a change it will
no one is really sure what those changes will be. What we be for the existing mobile networks, no-one can
know the spectrum requirements, basic infrastructure needs really be sure for the time being but the equipment
and possibilities, is balanced by a huge number of unknowns makers are investing a lot of energy in this and
how it will be delivered, what consumer take-up will be and some MNOs are responding very positively - even if
who will emerge from the 5G evolution at the top of the pile. other MNOs would have preferred more time.
For infrastructure owners, the need to deploy capex in order
to capitalize on this wealth of opportunity is clear. However, Theres a lot being said about 5G right now
information about the exact way to maximize that expenditure ultrafast broadband, one millisecond latency,
is thin on the ground. We spoke to Nicolas Ott, MD of Arqivas fixed wireless access, internet of things. Its being
Nicolas Ott, MD Telecoms, Arqiva
telecoms business, about how he sees 5G playing out. heralded as the mother of all solutions but its
unlikely that all of these promises will be delivered.
Keywords: 4G, Arqiva, Co-locations, Densification, Europe, First Mover Advantage, Infrastructure However of those promises you can be almost
Sharing, On-Grid, Rooftop, Small Cells, Towercos, Urban vs Rural, UK certain that ultrafast mobile broadband and
probably improved latency will.
Read this article to learn: With ultrafast wireless broadband you still need a
< When 5G will roll out in Europe lot of spectrum. In the recent past the focus was on
< The promises being made about 5G and which are realistic low frequency spectrum bands; 5G will need very
< How governments and business needs to respond to the 5G opportunity high frequency bands, the radius around macro
< What needs to happen for the UK to be prepared for 5G rollout and small cells will shrink dramatically, therefore
< How the stakeholders in telecoms and content will need to evolve to capitalise on 5G developments densification of small cells will potentially be
massive.
We see two types of evolution: in rural areas

well see a macro site densification so will
decommissioning stop? Will we go back to
densification of sites? Is 5G capable of being a
turning point in the tower industry? This all
depends on the technology.
When you go into a dense urban area, its an

opportunity for small cells or micro cells. The
The radius for a small cell is around 50m in some cases so in London
you might need as many as 500,000 small cells

radius for a small cell is typically around 250 metres
so when you look at the example of London you
might need as many as 500,000 small cells. The only
company currently rolling out small cells in London
is Arqiva; whilst Im not able to give you the exact working with Ofcom in the UK to explain the from an operators marketing point of view youll
amount of small cells that need to be added, what positive implications of 5G as the government also need to rollout in semi-urban areas, at least to
I can tell you is that it us a big jump from current needs to take bold decisions now to allow 5G to differentiate from competitors. Think about one of
figures; Its a very interesting opportunity. flourish in future. With Brexit the mobile networks the applications that 5G is expected to help deliver,
will be critical in deciding what kind of country the driverless car you wont want to switch it off
A vision could be that every lamppost in urban we want to live in it will be a huge contributor to when you get outside of the M25. So we believe that
areas will have a small cell and be connected to wealth. a successful 5G roll-out requires a combination of
fibre in five to seven years if this rolls out as we both Government will and commercial ambition.
expect. If 5G is mostly delivered by high-frequency TowerXchange: Do you feel the 5G rollout will
spectrum bands, the indoor coverage will be be driven more by commercial or governmental TowerXchange: How does the structure of the
interrupted so indoor systems will be even more impetus? industry need to change in order to facilitate 5G
important. Indoor DAS has benefits for landlords, rollout?
operators and towercos, so an elegant resolution Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms and
needs to be found to the debate around who pays in M2M, Arqiva: Well need 5G in both rural areas Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms and M2M,
order to achieve effective mass roll out. and urban high density areas. I dont think Arqiva: The regulator must take another look at
we can allow a massive digital divide to take further consolidation; some of the MNOs may not
You could almost use the word revolution to place. 5G is going to revolutionise the way that have the ability to invest in 5G otherwise and as
describe what 5G might allow vs. 4G. It will be we communicate and do business and it is not such, the rural areas in that country would suffer.
transformational and youll see a wider divide acceptable from a political standpoint to exclude Which countries will fail and which will succeed
between the winners and the losers after its the rural population from this. The pressure put on also depends on their ability to provide 5G in rural
happened. As a towerco we see it as a great MPs when there is not sufficient mobile coverage areas. If consolidation is necessary to achieve this
opportunity and were very excited about it. Were in their constituency is already enormous. Also then it must be considered.
Duplicating sets of towers in rural areas is TowerXchange: Can you tell us a little more Arqiva: We have to acknowledge that all the MNOs
counterproductive. We need to create an about 5G Fixed Wireless Access and how it could are still investing a lot of time and resources
economically compelling solution to densify in be rolled out on a larger scale? in finalising their 4G rollouts; Its normal and
rural areas and reduce, if not eliminate, duplicated right for them to do this. Im pretty sure 5G is on
passive infrastructure. Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms and M2M, their agenda but 4G rollout is on the top of the
Arqiva: A good example is to look at Verizon that pile. The mobile industry works in cycles so as
TowerXchange: With a potentially huge shift has publicised that they will trial 28GHz with 5G they come to the end they need to start thinking
in the way communications are run, do you for fixed wireless access. It appears that they are about whats the next technology they need to
envisage new players entering the market and considering two trials; one in an urban setting and consider. The time between 4G and 5G is smaller
how will relationships change between towercos, one in a rural area. than it was between 3G and 4G, though, so there
operators and other stakeholders? is acceleration going on. Theyre starting to think
The company wishes to retire their copper network hard about what it means in terms of customer
Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms and M2M, and replace it with fibre and the argument is that
experience and what they need in terms of
Arqiva: Things will change a lot. For example, some in many cases for the last few hundred metres
network. What does 1 millisecond of latency mean
big international mobile groups are considering you may be better off using a 28GHz fixed wireless
from a customer point of view? People are talking
buying film studios to have access to their own broadband access rather than laying fibre. I say
about it being used for surgery if I was going to
content, the OTT players are taking an ever more may as its very early days. If it was to be successful
have remote surgery Id rather prefer it was done
important role in the value chain and the car however, it could have very useful applications. In
through fibre than a mobile network. You have
industry is starting to be influenced by Apple or the UK, for example, the government is investing
to start with your customers; its a bit of a catch
Google for driverless cars. Its very hard to assess a lot in rolling out fibre to rural areas; 28GHz
22 but over the next few years well see what that
who will be the winners or the losers, but you can might provide an extra lever to provide 5G to the
looks like. Some will do early trials which will
see the internet players are changing, the battle for countryside. It is probably not the whole answer but
be very telling. MNOs also cant predict what the
premium content is raging more than ever while it certainly could be a part of the solution.
at same time many are struggling with returns on equipment will do. There wont be answers for at
capital employed. We are using that spectrum today for small cell least a couple of years.
backhaul and were studying what Verizon are
More consolidation will take place, horizontally as saying. Considering the current speed of broadband The crucial point however is whether, in the end,
well as vertically. In Europe were just not seeing in the UK its very compelling. the MNOs can monetise 5G. If they cant, therell
the big groups like you do in US or Asia. To be be a huge wave of investment with no additional
honest I dont know if thats a risk or opportunity TowerXchange: To what extent do you think revenues. 5G needs to be monetised and the
but theres a growing polarisation between big and future/5G contingencies are affecting operators answer to that question will dramatically affect
small players. But yes, the relationships between network planning strategies right now, and are what MNOs can do. Would customers pay 5 more
towercos, MNOs and stakeholders will change, at they doing enough? a month for the wow factor? The answer to that
least as a consequence of all the other changes that question will determine how 5G rolls out almost as
will take place. Nicolas Ott, Managing Director, Telecoms and M2M, much as network or technology
5G deployments: A window of
5G is driven by a vision, or a wish list, which appears
more revolutionary than the move from 3G to 4G
and that is supposed to open new revenue streams
opportunity for tower companies? for mobile network operators, while at the same
time reducing costs and increasing efficiency. Figure
Analysys Mason discuss how the use of macrocells and increasing use of small cells will
one (on page 2) summarises the 5G requirements.
drive the need for further mobile network infrastructure
Several use cases are being used as the
5G is currently a major topic commercial justification for 5G
but there still appears to be
confusion around what 5G Analysys Mason has for several years identified
three use cases, which should serve as the
actually means. For instance,
commercial justification for 5G:
Vodafones CTO Johan Wibergh
was recently quoted as stating
< Enhanced mobile broadband: An evolution
that You already feel that 5G is beyond 4G to provide even higher broadband
going to solve world hunger.[1] In capacity and bandwidth. It is difficult to see
this article, we look at potential enhanced broadband translating into massive new
5G technology developments revenue streams for MNOs but it will help them to
and provide our view on the keep up with end-user demand. There appears to be
impact they may have on mobile particular interest in Japan and South Korea for this
Emil Arnel, Analysys Mason networks and tower companies. use case.
< Massive connections (IoT): The management

Keywords: 4G, 5G, Analysys Mason, DAS, Europe, Europe Research, IBS, Infill, IoT, LTE, Rooftop, Small of millions/billions of connected devices. 5G will
Cells, Smart Cities, Third Party Reports compete for this use case with other technologies
that are already being deployed (Sigfox, LoRa and
the NB-IoT protocol within 4G). Several European
Read this article to learn: MNOs (e.g. Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom) appear
< Key drivers for 5G very interested in this use case as a way to find new
< How 5G is likely to be used revenue streams.
< What network changes will be driven by 5G needs
< Which new technologies will maximise network capacity < Ultra-reliable networks: Specific low-latency,
high-availability services or applications such as
< Possible scenarios for 5G implementation
remote surgery. This is the use case that leverages
the 5G vision the most. The monetisation potential Figure one: Key drivers and requirements for 5G
could be substantial, but this is also the most
uncertain and least developed use case. Fast response time
Low jitter, latency and delay
A fourth use case has recently emerged: fixed-
wireless access (FWA), driven by interest in the High availability
USA. Verizon has announced intentions to use
5G small cells instead of fibre final drop and in- Software-defined High reliability
Real-time
building wiring. AT&T has also announced that network performance Priority access
it is developing a proprietary fixed-wireless
Scalable, low-cost Very wide area
technology, AirGig, using mm-Wave signals along
systems coverage
power lines. FWA solutions using WiMAX, LTE or
other technologies are already used in rural areas
in many countries, but 5G has the potential to
Virtualised Critical
bring performance closer to that provided by fixed
infrastructure infrastructure
networks. The main drivers for FWA solutions are
cost savings and avoiding operational difficulties
related to connecting homes with fibre. FWA 5G
is therefore likely to be the first use case to be
implemented.
5G networks are likely to be based on different

technologies/solutions and use a wide range of
Very high-
spectrum
IoT and M2M speed
broadband
5G networks are not expected to be based on
a single specific radio-access technology but
rather to be a mixture (or a portfolio) of different
Many more connected Gigabit data rates
technologies and solutions. New and flexible 5G air
devices High-quality coverage
interfaces that will incorporate the high-bandwidth,
low-latency and high-reliability requirements are Deep indoor coverage Multi-spectrum service
under development. Such air interfaces are likely Signalling efficiency
to be initially deployed as small cells using newly
n confidence
licensed or unlicensed spectrum bands, typically
>6GHz. LTE-A is, however, likely to continue to be Source: Analysys Mason, 2016
used for macrocells for several years following 5G Figure two: Illustration of beamforming
introduction. LTE-A may gradually be replaced
by 5G air interfaces or be incorporated into and Standard antenna With beamforming
integrated with 5G and then evolve to converge with
5G.
Mobile networks traditionally use spectrum in the

Easy to
frequency range 700MHz2.6GHz (with regional do
differences). The spectrum that can be used for
mobile services in these bands is less than 1GHz. Hard to do
This translates into a potential total capacity (shared
between multiple MNOs) of tens of Gbit/s per km2. Even harder to do
For 5G it is likely that higher frequency bands will Source: Analysys Mason, 2016
be used. These include (again with some regional
differences) 3.5GHz and 5GHz, which are relatively New technologies will be incorporated into 5G to for ultra-reliable networks applications.
similar to the current mobile bands, but also cm- maximise network capacity < Dynamic cell allocation (facilitated by C-/V-
Wave bands (e.g. 24.527.5GHz or 31GHz) and mm- RAN) that allows the network to dynamically and
Wave bands (e.g. 7080GHz). The cm-Wave and mm- 5G will incorporate a number of technological in real time associate each device with one (or
Wave bands are characterised by a high availability developments (some already used in LTE-A) that more) access point instead of assigning a specific
of spectrum, multiple 10s of GHz. Therefore, it are intended to maximise the network capacity but geographical area (a cell) to an access point.
RefNo
would be possible to provide multiple Tbit/s per | Commercial
also toin provide
confidencemore efficiency and flexibility. Some < Software-defined networking, network functions
km2 using the cm-Wave and mm-Wave bands. examples are: virtualisation and network slicing[4]
The main drawback of these higher frequency < Multiple input, multiple output (MIMO)[2], which < Self-backhauling where backhauling and access
bands is propagation. Theoretical cell radii for the is likely to be used with beamforming in order to are provided using the same spectrum and radio
traditional mobile network bands can be up to tens allow the generation of narrow beams, especially interfaces. Such developments will, together with
of kilometres in rural areas (but substantially lower useful for high-frequency bands in order to mitigate general improvements on point-to-point radio
in urban areas). The cm-Wave band will have cell path loss and reduce interference. The principle backhaul, mean that fibre backhaul and fronthaul
radii in the hundreds of metres whereas for the of beamforming is illustrated below. This however will not be required to all sites. (Although we expect
mm-Wave band it will likely be in the tens of metres requires large antenna arrays. fibre usage to continue to increase.)
(and may require line-of-sight). The different < Cloud or Virtual RAN (C-/V-RAN), where
propagation characteristics mean that cm-Wave centralised shared server pools replace base station How 5G networks will be implemented in reality
and mm-Wave can realistically only be used for (BTS) equipment or at least the baseband units is still unclear
small-cell deployments. Macro-sites using <6GHz (BBUs) with remote radio heads (RRUs) on the
spectrum remain the only real realistic solution for towers. On the other hand, there may be a need to Above we have described different potential
wide-area coverage outside the densest areas. deploy mobile edge computing[3] to reduce latency technology developments. The actual network
deployments and configurations that MNOs will use

will however also depend on the commercial success
of new use cases and therefore remain uncertain.
Below we outline a likely evolution. There will be
some regional differences to this evolution: we
expect East Asia to be the front-runner for 5G (driven
by the 2018 and 2020 Olympic Games in South Korea
and Tokyo), followed by the USA (especially if FWA We expect East Asia to be the front-runner for 5G (driven by
deployments take off). Europe is expected to see
limited 5G development before 2022. the 2018 and 2020 Olympic Games in South Korea and Tokyo),
Until 2020:
< 4G will continue to be the main technology
deployed
< Macro-layer densification will continue, driven by
followed by the USA (especially if FWA deployments take off).
Europe is expected to see limited 5G development before 2022

capacity and quality-of-service requirements (cell-
edge data rates)
< Small cells will continue to be deployed in the USA
and East Asia and will start to be deployed in Europe
as an additional capacity layer in dense-urban areas in hospitals for remote surgery). Such coverage is to locations at a low cost) that new 5G technologies
< FWA deployments may begin in some countries likely to use small cells rather than macrocells. do not necessarily solve on their own. In any case,
(e.g. the USA). we expect mobile networks to require more and
Beyond 2025, it is possible that 4G and 5G will more infrastructure, which should open a window
20202025: merge of opportunity for infrastructure providers
< 5G will co-exist with 4G
< Macro-layer densification will subside in dense- We believe that 5G will continue to require
[1] FierceWireless, Vodafone CTO Johan Wibergh
urban and urban areas, small-cell densification will extensive use of macrocells, which will remain
warns industry not to over-hype 5G, 12 October 2016
continue important in rural areas but likely also in urban
[2] MIMO allows the use of multiple parallel transmit
< Macro-layer densification may continue in more areas. The traditional tower business model will
streams to a single device.
rural areas. therefore be valid also in the 5G world. Small cells [3] Servers deployed at the edges of networks, close to
Depending on how the use cases mentioned at the will become increasingly important but they will be the end users, which e.g. cache content.
beginning of this article develop, we may also start deployed in addition to existing macro-sites rather [4] These technologies allow a more flexible and
to see amorphous or focused coverage (e.g. along than as a substitute for them. It is important to note efficient use of network capacity while at the same
roads if connected cars become a big driver, along that there are significant practical and cost issues time being able to ensure specific QoS for different
residential buildings if FWA becomes important, or associated with small cells (first and foremost access services.
Vodafone on the evolution
TowerXchange: Please introduce yourselves,
your role at VPC and your background.
of small cells and the Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager,

Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone
practicalities of deployment Procurement Company: I did my degree in

telecommunications engineering and I have
twenty years of experience working in the
The time is ripe for towercos to enter the small cells market and diversify their offering
telecoms industry in the areas of technology and
procurement. Over the last eight years I have been
Founded in 2008, the Vodafone
Procurement Company S.a.r.l. (VPC) is working for the Vodafone Procurement Company
responsible for managing the companys in Luxembourg, managing the sourcing of diverse
supply chain. In this interview, Carlos radio access technologies and projects including
Marin, Principal Category Manager, Radio the small cells portfolio for Vodafone.
Small Cells & New Technologies, and
Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Manager,
Manager, Property Management Services Property Management Services, Vodafone
within VPC, discuss with TowerXchange the Procurement Company: I come from an Engineering
increasing relevance of small cells in the background and I have been working in the
global mobile industry and its evolution telecoms sector for almost twenty years. My main
Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager, Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category
Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Manager, Property Management Services, offering new dynamic ways to support area of expertise is in the network deployment
Vodafone Procurement Company Vodafone Procurement Company
connectivity. area, both in terms of technology and procurement.
My VPC role and category is the handling of the
Keywords: 4G, 5G, Backhaul, Best of TowerXchange, Business Model, DAS, Fibre, Insights, LTE, intangible part of the Access Network assets. This
Market Forecasts, Multi-Region, Network Rollout, Procurement, QoS,Small Cells, Vodafone, Vodafone entails the end2end lifecycle management of Cell
Procurement Company Site Leases (from acquisition until disposal).
TowerXchange: What has been your experience

Read this article to learn: of selecting and deploying small cell, microcell
< Crowd cells as a flexible approach to connectivity and DAS infill and capacity solutions, both
< How customer demand is driving the increased use of small cells indoor and outdoor?
< What effect 5G will have on the deployment of small cells
< Why towercos are yet to move into the small cells space Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Manager,
< How framework agreements are changing the rollout of small cells in municipal areas Property Management Services, Vodafone
Procurement Company: The basic requirement in
terms of deployment is to identify what you need
to do strategically and then decide the location(s).
Once the strategy is in place then the location
availability is absolutely crucial. If you secure this
aspect and thats what we do strategically here
you then have to hand over to the product line,
which is Carlos area of expertise.
Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager,

Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone
Procurement Company: From the procurement area
I manage the selection of suppliers and commercial
agreements for the deployment of small cells in
Vodafone markets, including the equipment and
implementation services. Small cells are a dynamic
portfolio, requiring the best possible understanding
of the end-customer needs as well as the technology,
and moving towards 5G, anticipating the trends and
new possibilities of radio small cells such as crowd
cells.
Crowd cells are small cells which will improve

not just the performance of the network for the
Vodafone small cells deployed on bus stop shelters in Amsterdam
primary user(s), but also the coverage for other
users around. In order to maximise deployment the operators heads as they evolve the driver of an MNO is to have sustainable and fair
location flexibility wireless backhaul is integrated heterogeneous layer of their networks; what profitability. To achieve this, you need to have a
within the solution. First deployments will be in motivates an MNO to invest in these distributed satisfied customer base and achieve excellence in
fixed locations, and in a second step going mobile - network solutions? In broad terms, how do they services delivered to this customer base. To be able
we are examining the potential of integrating crowd fit into planning the topography of a modern to provide top class service to your customers, you
cells into vehicles, which will reinforce the areas mobile broadband network? need to have a Network that provides that A class
where people crowd. Ultimately, using the crowd service anywhere this includes the small cell
to source the deployment options in future hence Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Manager, deployment.
the name. Property Management Services, Vodafone
Procurement Company: The best way to look at In order to do this you have to keep improving
TowerXchange: Wed like to get inside this is through a top down approach. The main your offering. Three years ago, 2Mbps was a good

to self-deploy or to buy from a towerco. An MNO
will do what makes business sense in terms of both
cost and speed to market. The initial tendency for
MNOs to self-deploy in the past was there because
towercos were not ready to provide this service.
It is all a matter of availability and performance.
the business case for towercos to support MNOs in deploying small
cells is extremely strong. But it would require towercos to move
beyond their traditional legacy activities to developing a partnership
approach with MNOs
Business-wise, there is no strict rule as to why
MNOs should pursue self-deployment.
In my opinion, the business case for towercos

to support MNOs in deploying small cells is
extremely strong. But it would require towercos
to move beyond their traditional legacy activities
to developing a partnership approach with MNOs.
speed, now its just not satisfactory. In order to densification grows. The real challenge will be Some towercos are more mature and ready to
cover this increase in demand for capacity you have not just to deploy small cells in large numbers, embrace this partnership approach, and some are
to acknowledge Moores Law where you have to but to integrate them closer to us and to suit our not there yet.
improve continuously. And with current and future surrounding environment, wherever we are. This
technology, operators recognise that one way to will not yet be apparent to members of the public TowerXchange: How have small cells, microcell
improve is through small cells. because we are continuing to invest in the macro and DAS solutions evolved in the last five years?
network to enhance and expand the capacity.
Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager, However in the near future, and specifically with Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager,
Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone the advent of 5G, it will be more apparent of the Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone
Procurement Company: Adding to what Nikolaos need to densify the networks using small cells. Procurement Company: Beyond improvements on
just said, the hunger for more data and new services capacity and form factors, five years ago all these
will increase the challenges to provide an adequate TowerXchange: Why would an MNO self-deploy solutions were mostly used to provide the coverage
level of quality in urban areas, particularly small cells rather than work with a third party or capacity in specific areas with weak signals.
indoor. The arrival of 5G with new spectrum in distributed network operator or towerco to Nowadays, we have a much more comprehensive
high frequencies, and the development of Smart provide these solutions on a neutral host basis? portfolio of small cells for tailored solutions and
Cities and Internet of Things will magnify these with the capacity to improve the network in very
challenges. Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Manager, precise location beyond the possibilities of using
Property Management Services, Vodafone only macro base stations. This is enabling new
The centre of gravity of a network will move Procurement Company: Actually, the goal of an MNO services like HD video or cloud office and providing
away from large geographical areas to specific would be to have up and running in their service a superior quality for larger number of users in hot-
locations, and from outdoor to indoor, as network layer of small cells. There is no specific preference spots.
TowerXchange: Lets talk about deployment. How nutshell, we have to skip the one to one acquisition enjoy it you need a powerful and safe car as well
do you drive a small cell rollout to scale who process and transfer our efforts, focus and as a road in adequate conditions. To carry on
are the municipal and real estate stakeholders resources to creating framework relationships and with the analogy, the road would be the backhaul
you need to engage with and how do you build agreements. of the small cell solution. However, we need to
those relationships? differentiate what each customer needs. Solutions
TowerXchange: What will be the requirements for residential use are extremely different in terms
Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Manager, for small cells when 5G is launched? of their requirements to enterprise customers, or
Property Management Services, Vodafone public ones to be deployed in stadiums or other
Procurement Company: One of the critical factors Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager, high footfall areas.
is time to market. So the key activity is always to Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone
have framework agreements that cover a whole Procurement Company: With 5G, I expect small cells When we are deploying we look at connecting to
geographical area and not resort to traditional to provide far more capacity and integrate multiple fibre as first option. Where not possible, we do have
negotiations on a site by site basis. For example, frequency bands while keeping an adequate form other adequate solutions that work on wireless
when it comes to covering a much bigger area, factors and being more energy efficient. They backhaul but even in these cases, our goal is to be
it makes sense to create framework agreements will be easier to deploy, including plug & play able to upgrade to fibre over time.
with worldwide real estate companies or global configuration, and as roll-out scales the architecture
players in innovative areas. We have a framework of the network might evolve together with the TowerXchange: How do the energy and
agreement with the biggest outdoor advertising macro into Cloud RAN solutions and SON (Self maintenance requirements of small cell, DAS
agency in the world and thanks to this agreement, Organising Networks) advanced capabilities. and microcell deployments compare to the
we now have access to more than 150,000 locations typical backup power and maintenance regimes
globally. When one of our MNOs or Partner Market Small cells may create also more business required at the macro network level?
decides to utilise this agreement, it means its a opportunities facilitating new services for end
lot easier than making the individual acquisitions users, as well as Managed Services for companies to Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager,
themselves. support and maintain all the infrastructure, adding Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone
new requirements to the list. Procurement Company: Backup power solutions in
Another aspect is to make framework agreements macro-sites are an absolute must. For small cells
with large corporations in the fast moving TowerXchange: Its often said that fibre that operate under the coverage of a macro-site,
consumer goods area - corporations that have many connectivity, or alternative backhaul solutions, generally it wont be as critical because the macro-
points of presence. Supermarket chains and Banks are critical to small cell rollouts to what extent site can still guarantee a minimum service. And I
are a good example. have you found that to be the case? remark generally, because there will be many cases
of small cells, both public and private domains,
Lastly, we need to engage with the municipal Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager, that will require small cells to be up and running to
authorities of a given country. This is more Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone avoid congestions. Or if we think about using small
stringent because you have to create a longer- Procurement Company: Fibre is extremely cells deployed quickly with drones to respond to
term relationship which has to be reciprocal. In a important. You see, its like driving a fast car. To emergency situations, which is a study case today,

do you see the current state of the ecosystem in
different regions?
Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Manager,

Property Management Services, Vodafone
Procurement Company: Like I said before, there
isnt a perfect recipe and it all comes down to
creating the right mix of expertise, interest and
My ambition is to have zero traditional energy consumption
in the future by implementing renewable energy solutions
on sites hosting small cells
open approach. It is our belief that partnering with
the right players in each relevant market is key.
In markets where MNOs are very strong, they could

easily take the lead in the deployment process.
Whereas towercos could become the ideal partner
where they have greater footprints and a higher
degree of expertise.
We should always keep in mind that theres always

those small cells will require also an autonomous TowerXchange: Does the addition of small cells
something to be gained by working together and
power source. So small cells do need some level of into future networks reduce the need for macro
much to be lost by standing against each other. This
power backup. sites?
is something we want to take to the market and
include in our small cells strategy.
My ambition is to have zero traditional energy Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager,
consumption in the future by implementing Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone
Carlos Marin, Principal Category Manager,
renewable energy solutions on sites hosting small Procurement Company: I dont see any reduction Radio Small Cells & New Technologies, Vodafone
cells. on the number of macro sites and actually we are Procurement Company: The suitability of a given
going to require more, particularly street assets solution depends on many factors, including
Nikolaos Antoniou, Principal Category Manager, in urban areas. Macro sites will continue to be the the structure and architecture of a city and the
Property Management Services, Vodafone foundation of mobile networks but macro alone will deployment challenges that city presents.
Procurement Company: From the maintenance not be sufficient. We will need further densification
point of view, we do not really see many differences through small cells deployed in street assets and For example, even we tend to think first on dense
to the maintenance we perform on the legacy indoor locations. populated and high traffic areas for small cells, in
network. There might be a few small variations on emerging countries we have a strong case to deploy
the required skill-set in light of the nature of the TowerXchange: Who is best placed to deploy and small cells to create coverage in uncovered areas. So
product since small cells are more compact and less manage small cell networks MNOs, towercos, we are even using small cells as macro sites when
modular. fibercos, or specialist network companies? How a macro site isnt a viable solution
Cellnex deepens their
TowerXchange: Congratulations on the
announced acquisition of CommsCon! What has
motivated Cellnex to make this latest acquisition?
commitment to small cell with the Alex Mestre, Business Development and
acquisition of CommsCon International Director, Cellnex Telecom: Capturing

opportunities in the European markets is key for
the development of Cellnexs project. CommsCon
12.4x EBITDA valuation sets a benchmark for the value of European small is a story of adding differential value in terms of
cell operations technology and innovation. It operates in the niche
of the small cells and DAS which will drive the
telecom infrastructure market in the upcoming
Cellnex has announced the acquisition of CommsCon Italia s.r.l. for
years. We are not only going to see rationalisation
18.65mn, representing a 12.4x multiple on a forecast EBITDA of
and decommissioning in mature markets with
1.5bn through 2017. CommsCon operates 85 technical rooms hosting
networks which overlap, but densification and
720 base transceiver stations, in turn connected to a sense network
antenna capillarity will be key to make mobile
of 12,200 small antennas deployed in DAS systems in landmark sites broadband real.
such as Milans San Siro stadium and Turins Juventus stadium;
the Milan, Genoa and Brescia undergrounds; hospitals in Bergamo TowerXchange: Please comment on the maturity
and Milan; high-speed tunnels in Bologna, the Gran Sasso Tunnel of the DAS and small cell market in Italy and in
(10km under the Apenines); Milans historic city centre; offices the rest of Europe today compared to the forecast
and exhibition halls; as well as the Milano-Malpensa Airport and that 350,000 such sites could be deployed by 2020.
commercial malls (e.g. IKEA centres).
Alex Mestre, Business Development and
Keywords: News, Towercos, Europe, News, Europe News, DAS, International Director, Cellnex Telecom: What we
Valuation, Small Cells, Italy, Cellnex, CommsCon can say today is that this is an emerging market
Alex Mestre, Cellnex Telecom
throughout Europe and the growth potential is huge
as it is a technology expected to hatch in the next
two to five years.
< How CommsCon adds differential value in terms of technology and innovation
TowerXchange: Who should deploy and operate
< The roles of MNOs and independent infrastructure providers like Cellnex in the deployment of this new heterogeneous network layer - MNOs or
heterogeneous networks independent third parties like Cellnex?
< Cellnexs pan-European vision of macro and microcell networks
< The investibility European small cells operators Alex Mestre, Business Development and
International Director, Cellnex Telecom: This is not

data consumption. Infrastructure and network layer, we have to say that macro- and microcell
sharing is an accelerator of market penetration, networks are not worlds apart. On the contrary
while it no longer seems to be the differentiating both complement each other. LTE deployment will
factor for MNOs in terms of market share. demand a more dense and capillar infrastructure
The acquisition of CommsCon positions
network. Based on small cells, DAS, fibre backbone
Cellnex as a key player in the development Most probably we are going to see parts of connectivity to these small cells or to the current
and roll-out of telephony and data coverage these networks being deployed and operated by macrocells on a typical rooftop that will be
solutions in busy areas. By implementing independent infrastructure operators like Cellnex, connecting via macrowave with the small cells.
advanced technologies based on small cells and parts of them being deployed by MNOs. In terms
and distributed antenna systems (DAS) of planning and a rationale, as well as efficient Connectivity is becoming increasingly hybrid or
deployment and use of the installed capacity, heterogeneous in order to get the signal transported
Cellnex can provide services to various
the higher the sharing ratio the better the time to the end-user. Therefore the infrastructure mix
operators based on a single infrastructure
to market for this new technology, the lower the will be heterogeneous as well.
and equipment roll-out. The densification entry barriers, and the higher the perceived quality
of networks in open and closed crowded service for MNOs customers. We can expect three processes running in
spaces is one of the main vectors of growth parallel: (a) a rationalisation of the existing
in the telecommunications infrastructure TowerXchange: How does this latest acquisition macrocells passive infrastructure, increasing
industry for the coming years. The industry fit into Cellnexs pan-European vision of macro sharing and tenancy ratios per site; (b) macro cells
and microcell networks? base transmitting stations growth to cope with
will not achieve genuine broadband and
densification needs; (b) a stepwise extension of the
true mobility unless we can prepare for
the challenge associated with rolling out
hundreds of thousands of small cells in
large urban areas - Tobias Martnez, CEO
Alex Mestre, Business Development and
International Director, Cellnex Telecom: Consistent
with the previous question on who should deploy
and operate the small cells as a new network
sharing concept rather than a focus on ownership,
in the case of outdoor small cells to be deployed
on urban furniture, as well as indoor connectivity
based on DAS or small cells too
of Cellnex Telecom
TowerXchange commentary: Cellnex continues to futureproof their business model
In a mature telecommunications infrastructure market like Europe, with some macro networks over-built
an either/or answer. The key fact is that to reach to the extent that there is the potential for substantial decommissioning, much of the organic growth is to be
a level of right coverage that guarantees a mobile found in small cells, microcells and DAS.
broadband service with a very high number of
simultaneous users accessing broadband content, This is not Europes leading infrastructure operators first foray into small cells, and it wont be Cellnexs
we will need a dense network of small cells both last such investment either. In fact, conspiracy theorists would ask why a 18.65mn acquisition was being
formally announced by a 3.5bn market cap infrastructure giant? Two reasons wed suggest; one, while
outdoor and indoor. Two decades ago coverage and
small by Cellnex standards, this is a strategic acquisition illustrative of their vision to foster the development
thus network infrastructure ownership was a source
of a shared, heterogeneous, pan-European telecoms network. And two, consider this announcement a de
of competitive advantage among MNOs. Today the
facto standing offer to Europes other small cell operators: Cellnex wants YOUR business!
game is about content, services and highly intense
The growth and rollout of the global TowerXchange: Please can you give us a
background to Small Cell Forum
small cell market and the role for towercos in Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: The Small Cell
Forum has been around since 2007. In its initial
multi-operator neutral-host deployments incarnation it was known as the Femto Forum
and at that time it was primarily focused on the
An interview with Small Cell Forum Chair, Alan Law residential market and creating an industry vehicle
to drive chipset availability for this whole new
An increasing number of towercos are viewing the small cell market as market potential. The starting question for the
a key area for growth, especially in developed markets where operator industry was If I can buy a WiFi access point for a
focus has shifted to urban infill and densification. With 2015 seeing small few dollars, why cant I buy a cellular access point
cell equipment sales pass the US$1bn mark for the first time, technological for the same sort of price and what is it that needs
advances making multi-operator neutral host small cells readily available to be done in order to facilitate that?
and market forecasts that by 2020 over 80% of small cell deployments will
involve third parties TowerXchange spoke to Alan Law, Chair of the Small We have come a long way since then. We started
Cell Forum to better understand the role that towercos could play in this focused solely on residential and then as a body
Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum
rapidly expanding industry. we have expanded to cover use cases in enterprise,
urban and rural and remote locations. With this
Keywords: Active Infrasharing, Americas, Arqiva, Asia, Business Case, Business Model, Capacity broadening of scope, the femto name wasnt so
Enhancements, Capex, Cisco, Co-locations, CommScope, Crown Castle, DAS, Densification, Europe, appropriate any more femto is just one category
Infrastructure Sharing, Installation, JC Decaux, Leasing & Permitting, Market Forecasts, MNOs, which was suited to residential. So we needed a
Network Rollout, Opex Reduction, Opex Sharing, Outdoor Equipment, Reliance Jio, ROI, Shelters, Small broader name for the forum and it became known
Cell Forum, Small Cells, Towercos, Urban vs Rural as the Small Cell Forum.
Our specified goal is solving the HetNet puzzle

which is really about driving the scale of adoption
Read this article to learn: of small cell technology within the industry and the
< Who the Small Cell Forum are and how they are working to accelerate small cell deployment ecosystem. A lot of what we do is about addressing
< The use cases of small cells and why the definition with DAS is blurring gaps in understanding and standards that exist that
< The current size and future growth projections for global small cell markets can be barriers to deployment. As we address each
< Market drivers for multi-operator small cells and the implications for towercos of these barriers the deployment path becomes
< How barriers to small cell deployment such as access to site, power and transmission are being smoother.
addressed
We have membership covering everything from
chipset suppliers, component suppliers, OEMs that we do have these categorisations of Residential and were doing has a strong customer focus whilst also
bring access points together, system integrators, SoHo (small office, home office), Enterprise, Urban being underpinned with the realities of what can
test providers and operators the whole ecosystem and Rural & Remote. The whole idea is that forum actually be delivered.
is represented. covers the broad spectrum of deployment scenarios
which have been organised on an environmental TowerXchange: How is the work communicated
TowerXchange: We hear lots of definitions basis. to the community?
surrounding small cells and DAS with many of
these boundaries between systems blurring, TowerXchange: Can you tell us a little more Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: Throughout
how does the Small Cell Forum define the small about the Small Cell Forums key areas of work? the year we have various releases. Whilst we have
cell market? no fixed schedule, we would expect to have at
Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: The Small Cell least one release per year. 2016 is unusual in that
Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: Small cell Forum has effectively got six prongs to its work we are likely to have three releases. This is a bit
is an umbrella term for operator controlled low program which look at new technologies that unprecedented in terms of output but is a great
powered radio access nodes including those that we think will be quite transformational. In the testament to the activity in the forum and how the
operate in licensed spectrum and unlicensed enterprise and smart enterprise space we have work is being distributed amongst the membership.
carrier grade WiFi bands. Small cells typically a workstream looking at virtualisation, another It is also indicative of the fact that so much is
have a range from 10 metres to several hundred looking at SONs (self organising networks) and happening from a technological standpoint.
metres and the types of small cells include HetNet and increasingly we add in what we
femtocells, picocells and microcells (those call automation on to that. The difference with We presented the smart enterprise release at the
groupings broadly increasing in size). Whilst this automation really being the fact that it covers Mobile World Congress, we plan to release our next
is the latest definition that we have, the definition everything from the workflow management and the piece on HetNet foundations at our London event,
is now certainly blurring with the adoption of new site instructions to the technology, configuration, and then well have another release later in the year
technologies and capabilities such as virtualisation. set-up, maintenance and optimisation piece. Were which will include lots of the work were doing on
As you start to virtualise a small cell, the physical also working on license exempt technologies (in the virtualisation. It is an incredibly busy year but it is
network equipment becomes quite similar to DAS sense of understanding what that means for the great content that is coming out which we think will
(distributed antenna system) in the sense that it is small cell densification story) as well as working on help the market to continue to grow significantly
an amplifier and a radiating element that you then multi-operator, neutral host systems and 5G, M2M over the forthcoming period.
seed with cellular base pan processing which is and IoT.
hosted somewhere else in your network through TowerXchange: When you speak about the size
software. When you virtualise in that way you can Weve created a model where we have champions of the small cell industry and the sort of growth
conceptually think about it as a tightly integrated for each of these activities where we assign both that is expected what kind of numbers are we
DAS and base station infrastructure- its similar in an operator lead and a vendor lead. This gives us a looking at?
an architectural sense. balance of what an operator wants to see and what
a vendor thinks needs to happen and so we end up Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: An important
In the sense of the environments that we look at, with a balanced output. It makes sure anything that milestone for the industry was back in November
Small cell deployments
Market status report | February 2016 Solving the HetNet puzzle
last year where we released what we called our

Crossing the Chasm report, the messaging behind 13.3 million small cells Small cell market now worth more
the report was were on the hockey stick of growth shipped to date than $1billion annually
now. There have been, to date, lots of projections
which get changed due to all kinds of circumstances
14.0m
Small cell shipments BY USE CASE
12.0m
Cumulative shipments
-theres always the fear that the growth will start 10.0m 14.0m
next year, with that next year continuously 8.0m
12.0m
being pushed out. Our Crossing the Chasm report
6.0m
10.0m
states that we think we are already on the growth 4.0m
8.0m
curve, we have put the stake in the ground and we 2.0m
0 6.0m
have the confidence in the statistics to believe that.
4.0m
September March September December March September December
2013 2014 2014 2014 2015 2015 2015
2.0m
We released our latest small cell deployment
0
numbers for Mobile World Congress [all these Residential/SOHO
release documents are free to download on the IN 2015,
120,000
URBAN
site www.scf.io]. There have been 13.3mn small NON-RESIDENTIAL SHIPMENTS
SHIPMENTS
CONSTITUTED 38% OF TOTAL 100,000
cells shipped to date making it a substantive SMALL CELLS IN Q4
GREW
280%
market in terms of where it stands. In the sense 80,000
of understanding how the market has developed 60,000

NON-RESIDENTIAL SMALL
to get to that, during course of 2015, enterprise CELLS COMPRISED 66% OF 40,000
shipments doubled, urban shipments grew 280%, SMALL CELL REVENUE IN 2015,
IN 2015 ENTERPRISE 20,000
rural and remote grew 70% and residential SHIPMENTS
DOUBLED 0
(the most established market) grew 20% - there Urban
was significant growth in each sector which is
800,000 30,000
encouraging. 700,000
25,000
600,000
Another important milestone during the course 500,000

20,000
of the year was that we crossed US$1bn of 400,000 15,000
small cell equipment revenue, that was just for 300,000

10,000
equipment and so doesnt include any of the extra 200,000

5,000
100,000
market opportunity around installation and site
0 0
acquisition. But in the sense of where the numbers Enterprise Rural & Remote
are going in the shorter term were looking at 270%

growth for enterprise during the course 2016, September March September December March September December
2013 2014 2014 2014 2015 2015 2015 Source: Small Cell Forum
another 150% growth in the urban sector and if we
REGIONAL analysis 2016 forecast the future is bright

Europe North America
North America
APAC
APAC
Europe Small cell shipment OUTLOOK
Rural & Remote
September March September December March September December

2013 2014 2014 2014 2015 2015 2015
APAC. However, there is significant growth globally.

REGIONAL analysis 2016 forecast the future is bright For example, the smallest region at the moment is
Europe North America
North America
APAC
MEA
APAC
Europe
China
Small cell shipment OUTLOOK LatAm but if we look over the course of the last year
China MEA 10.0m it grew 500%; even though its a late blossomer its
Latin Latin
ENTERPRISE
America America 9.0m
SMALL CELL
working hard to catch up! Similarly, when you look
8.0m
Small cell shipments

Non-residential SHIPMENTS at the numbers for China, they are currently very
All small cells 7.0m
small cells 6.0m WILL GROW
5.0m BY 270% modest, but there are certain deals in place that if
4.0m THIS YEAR we look into 2016, China will most probably swamp
3.0m
2.0m URBAN everybody by the end of the year.
1.0m SMALL CELL
0 SHIPMENTS
S
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
There is a need for small cell technology
FINITION
WILL GROW BY
NEW DE Cell Forum Residential/
SOHO
Enterprise Urban Rural
& Remote
150% THIS YEAR internationally and there are tremendous
for Small egments: opportunities. A good reference is the presentation
market s ed in
Rural & R
ge
cells deploy
emote: Sm
s, re m
all
ote indust
ry, transpor
tation,
Note: Small cell definition
now includes low-power Small cell revenue FORECAST Reliance Jio (one of the Indian operators) gave at
rural villa
or emerge
ncy an urban
RRH units $7.0bn our Dallas event. In terms of deployment over the
all cells in Annual small cell revenue
utdoor sm $6.0bn
Urban: O tion next two years they are looking to create 100,000
ity applica cluding
high-capac all cells, in
$5.0bn
: Indoor sm ents macro sites, 300,000 small cells and 500,000 WiFi
d deploym
En te rp ri se SMALL CELL REVENUE
sin es s- le $4.0bn
d bu
carrier an nits in hom
es FORECAST TO REACH

H O : U $3.0bn
al/SO
Residenti fic es $6.7 BILLION BY 2020
small of
and very
$2.0bn
$1.0bn
0
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
2016 Mobile Experts LLC.
Forecast/shipment data provided by Mobile Experts
www.mobile-experts.net Residential Non-residential Source: Small Cell Forum
cast eye further ahead were anticipating that small players being acquired by big companies such as
cell equipment revenue will be around US$6.7bn CommScope and Cisco, and the Nokia-Alcatel Lucent Were anticipating that small
by 2020 growing from the billion of last year (see merger. There is a degree of consolidation but there
figure one). is still a lot of competition and we continue to see cell equipment revenue will
new entrants as well entering the market. be around US$6.7bn by 2020
TowerXchange: As the market matures, are we
seeing consolidation of the equipment suppliers
whose equipment sales are accounting for the
numbers in these statistics?
TowerXchange: Is the growth that were seeing
across the sectors worldwide or do you see
bigger growth in some regions that others?
growing from the billion of
last year

Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: I would say there Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: Were seeing the
is still a broad market, there has been a degree of split across different regions being quite varied, the
market consolidation, but that is more due to small largest regions being Europe, North America and

access points; this is nearly a million assets being
deployed in two years which is quite incredible in
the sense of the numbers.
TowerXchange: With such big numbers being

forecasted for deployment how do you envisage
By 2020 only 20% of small cells will be fully deployed and managed by
that deployment will be rolled out? Who will be
the key stakeholders and what business models
make most sense?
Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: We dont have

all the answers right now but let me give you some
MNOs; what that means is that for 80% of these future small cells there
will be some other party involved in the deployment and management of
those assets. Theres a good chance that towercos that are building this
infrastructure can have a role in that

statistics. Our Crossing the Chasm report contains
research from Rethink Research who estimate
that by 2020 only 20% of small cells will be fully
deployed and managed by MNOs; what that means believe it will be one of the key requirements of the as mobile edge compute and virtualisation; these
is that for 80% of these future small cells there will future. enable operators to differentiate even over common
be some other party involved in the deployment and sets of infrastructure. That makes it easy to support
management of those assets. Theres a good chance TowerXchange Has there been reluctance in some of the business cases for shared infrastructure
that towercos that are building this infrastructure the past to look at multi-operator, neutral host going forward.
can have a role in that. A significant new potential solutions and if so, why?
opportunity is up for grabs and its a massive In our questionnaire that went out we asked MNOs
growth area. Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: To some extent, what they considered to be the biggest concerns
yes, but technology has clearly got better with time surrounding multi-operator deployment. The three
In release six theres a document which might be and it continues to improve which makes it easier highest scoring concerns were upfront capex and
interesting to the TowerXchange community called to do multi-operator and do it better. There is also return on investment; monetisation; and enabling
Market drivers for multi-operator small cells. an appreciation of changing market conditions, in competition - over 50% of respondents gave those as
Within the report it takes a look what the market the sense that for many operators, coverage is quite their top three. Our work programs seek to address
might look like, both with and without multi- similar and no longer a differentiator. Operators these concerns; looking at the right technological
operator neutral host small cells. It estimates that always want to differentiate what they can do deployment and solutions that will help address
for the enterprise vertical the multi operator market in their market to gain customers and customer the capex and ROI issue; developing new service
is 91% bigger than without and in public spaces loyalty. They can differentiate either through upper enablement supporting the monetisation piece; and
it is double the market with multi-operator than layer services or the radio capabilities that they working on changes in virtualisation that will help
without. Hence why in the forum we have theme have in their network. One of the newer changes to ensure that competition remains between the
looking at multi operator and neutral hosts as we which is having an impact is with concepts such operators.

to maturity of market; people are not debating need to send 50 people to a site, I can equip them
whether to use small cell technology, they are with the small cell infrastructure they need to go
asking how to deploy it and how to do it at scale with them. Installing it means they can continue to
weve moved away from the why and on to work in the way that they naturally would in the
People are not debating whether to the how. This again was an interesting part of office in that same agile way; similarly when they
the Reliance Jio presentation back in Dallas. With move on, its very easy to remove again.
use small cell technology, they are
asking how to deploy it and how to
do it at scale weve moved away
from the why and on to the how
all of those hundreds of thousands of assets they
are working to deploy, the only way that it can be
achieved is through automation on every level. The
company has worked very hard to automate every
process which then allows them to scale to the
There is tremendous flexibility that is coming out
of these new capabilities and technologies and
its happening not only in the sense of workplace
improvements but also in the way that things such
thousands of deployments they need to make every as retail are transforming. There is a real change
month in order to hit targets. in consumer behaviour if you go into a shop and
they dont have the item in that youre looking
TowerXchange: When speaking of challenges, TowerXchange: When we move away from the for, you can go online and order it there and then.
what barriers exist around the physical urban side and look at the enterprise side, People often think of the increasing demands on
deployment of small cells? where have you seen the biggest uptake and how mobile infrastructure in terms of increasing social
important are multi-operator small cells? media levels, but this is also an important part of
Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: There are always the equation adapting to consumer and workplace
the classic challenges around gaining access to a Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: In public spaces behaviour with the view of selling more goods or
site, to power, and to transmission to support any you dont have the degree of control over which driving better working efficiencies.
small cell deployment. The good news is that there operators are in use in a particular area and so
are a number of companies that own worldwide there will be a strong aspiration to have multi- TowerXchange: How has the Small Cell Forum
international portfolios of street infrastructure operator deployments. engaged with the towerco market in the past and
assets and advertising hoardings (such as JC how to you foresee this changing?
Decaux) who are starting to make sure that their When it comes to enterprises, a lot of the drive for
new street furniture is equipped with space to technology is to allow greater efficiencies to be Alan Law, Chair, Small Cell Forum: Weve had
allow small cells. You see special tram stops in the delivered and to have a greater level of flexibility. variable degrees of interaction with towercos in the
Netherlands that have been created to host small The beauty of small cells is that it allows great past and count some of the larger companies (such
cell infrastructure, there are smart advertising fluidity in your business, with opportunities to as Arqiva and Crown Castle amongst our members).
hoardings being developed where small cells can ramp up and scale down very quickly in order As we advance into a new world where there will be
sit at the back and we have seen solutions on street to address demands that are being placed on the a bigger focus on neutrally deployed assets, I think
lighting in China. company. Having solutions that are also very quick there is even more potential for towercos and we
and rapid to deploy (which is what you get out of hope to work closely with the market to improve
This type of infrastructure is a good testament small cell technology) also helps that agility. If I synergies
Who will win the race to Akin to the multi-tenancy model, multi-operator
small cell solutions can enable towercos to
generate incremental revenues by offering small
provide multi-operator small cells? cells as a service. By choosing a multi-operator
solution, installation of small cells is made more
Will multi-operator small cell solutions make the process of towerco-led efficient, investments are futureproofed, and
small cell deployment more efficient? myriad opportunities are opened up for towercos
to position themselves as the ideal neutral host
As towercos increasingly look to diversify their offering for operators looking to densify urban outdoor
to MNOs, and distributed networks become more and networks and improve indoor coverage.
more necessary in urban network densification in

TowerXchange has spoken to the market leading
advance of 5G, the business case for providing small
developers of multi-operator small cell solutions,
cells as a service could be accelerated with multi-
and provided a useful comparison of the products
operator small cell solutions. Who are the current on offer from CommScope, Huawei, ip.access, and
leaders in the development of multi-operator small SpiderCloud. We asked them all the same questions
cells, and what business models could they facilitate? in order to provide a clear contrast of how their
solutions and business models differ, so that you
can find the best partner for your small cells as
Keywords: 4G, 5G, Active Infrasharing, Anchor Tenant, Business Case, Business Model, Camouflage,
Capacity Enhancements, Capex, Co-locations, CommScope, DAS, Densification, First Mover Advantage, a service offering. Whether you are interested in
Huawei, Infill, Infraco, Infrastructure Sharing, Installation, IoT, ip.access, LTE, Logistics, Market exploring your options as a neutral host, looking for
Entry, Market Overview, Masts and Towers, Multi-Operator, Network Rollout, New Market Entrant, your next high-profile proof of concept in a large
Operational Excellence, Operator-Led JV, Opex Sharing, Outdoor Equipment, Procurement, QoS, scale public venue, or a widespread enterprise roll
RANsharing, RF Design, Risk, Shelters, Single RAN, Site Level Profitability, Skilled Workforces, Small out, TowerXchange have compiled the whos who of
Cells, Smart Cities, SpiderCloud, Tenants Perspective, Universal Access, Urban vs Rural multi-operator small cell providers to make partner
selection just a little bit easier.
Read this article to learn: If you are interested in understanding more about
< Who is doing what in multi-operator small cells: how the available multi-operator solutions compare the small cell market and the opportunities for
< How multi-operator small cells can help prove the business case for towerco led deployments towercos and other third party distributed network
< Who is the buyer of small cell solutions service providers, come to the TowerXchange
< How spectrum sharing can facilitate multi-operator small cell roll out Europe Meetup in London on 4th and 5th April
< How solution providers see DAS and small cell integration playing out for 5G and hear directly from the companies leading the
charge.
to DAS or small cells closer to the subscriber and and Verizon Wireless is the first North American
in locations that are less visible, easier to access and wireless operator to add the ION-E to its approved
difficult to protect. product list.
CommScope For reliable wireless voice connectivity, and for CommScopes 5G collaborations include: The U.S.
supporting visitors or customers, cellular is the Advanced Wireless Industry Initiative; 5Tonic
1. Please introduce yourself and your company. clear choice. No manual authentication is required, Open research and innovation laboratory for
and voice is inherently and fully supported. The 5G founded by Telefonica and IMDEA Network;
Samuel Buttarelli, VP Sales Europe, CommScope. user does not become a burden on the enterprise 5GAmericas influential industry trade organisation
Samuel leads the European Sales team for the IT department, rather they are supported by their composed of leading telecommunications service
Distributed Capacity and Coverage Solutions mobile service provider. According to research providers and manufacturers; Next Generation
division at CommScope. CommScope offers a commissioned by CommScope, 87% of building Mobile Networks (NGMN) Alliance focused on 5G
wide range of network infrastructure solutions professionals believe that it is imperative to have and accelerating the development of LTE-Advanced
that can be deployed in both indoor and outdoor in-building cellular coverage in all areas of their and its ecosystem.
environments, ranging from stadiums and public buildings.
transportation hubs, to medium-sized enterprise 4. What other use cases do you foresee?
locations, to small-business and residential 3. How proven is your multi-operator product/
locations. service? Who is using it? Operators will need to cover more and more
buildings from the inside out. In the past they have
2. What product or service have you developed The OneCell C-RAN Small Cell Solution was focused mostly on public-access venues big venues
for the multi-operator small cell market, and shortlisted by GSMA as a finalist for the 2016 Global where lots of people go. Those have been done.
under what model does it operate, e.g. multiple Mobile Awards in the Best Technology Enabler Those are big buildings, big systems. For example,
independent small cells, multi-radio cells, using category. OneCell forms a single super cell indoors CommScope is the network supplier for Stade de
shared spectrum, using unlicensed spectrum? that eliminates handovers and border interference France.
across large areas, creating a high performing LTE
CommScope offers the OneCell system a hybrid experience for end-users. OneCell enables sector Going forward, we will need to move into those
small-cell solution that combines features from DAS, virtualisation with Smart Reuse technology that second and third-tier buildings that are more in
C-RAN and small cells to provide a scalable solution gives operators the ability to scale capacity within a the 200,000 to 500,000 sq ft size. These new systems
for indoor environments with demanding capacity given spectrum. The OneCell system won Best Mobile will need to be much lower cost and be deployable
and coverage requirements that uses the ethernet Technology Breakthrough, and Outstanding Overall by a different type of professional. Maybe an IT
existing infrastructure for fronthaul. CommScope Mobile Technology the CTOs Choice, at the Global professional instead of an RF engineer with 15
solutions include metro-cell concealment solutions Mobile Awards 2015. years of experience. Weve been focused on that
for outdoor deployments. These are designed to in-building space, creating the platforms and the
address the challenges that mobile operators face in Sprint uses S1000 small cells for use in traffic- ecosystem to allow DAS to scale to a much larger
moving the telecom infrastructure from macro sites intensive small and medium-sized business locations audience.
5. What do you see as the potential customer for might look like more of the same, I expect to see Huawei offers two multi-operator Small Cell
this product/service, MNO, towerco or property significant developments in laying the foundation solutions: LampSite and SingleDAS.
owner? for 5G.
Huaweis LampSite Small Cell solution can be
Small cells have typically been used in small and configured to support multi-operator operation via
medium size office buildings and other commercial Multi-operator Core Network (MOCN) or Multiple
venues characterised by lower (but still significant) Operator Radio Access Network (MORAN). MOCN
usage volume and fewer operators or frequency uses shared spectrum with shared radio units, and
bands. Technically DAS can serve the needs of these MORAN uses dedicated spectrum and dedicated
venues, but because of its high fixed costs DAS has radio units for each operator, but it shares the
not been a cost-effective solution for them. baseband unit and the remote hub across operators.
6. Please sum up your vision for multi-operator Huaweis SingleDAS is a Distributed Antenna System
small cells? Huawei (DAS) that can accept multiple RF sources from
multiple operators and the signal is aggregated
The trends that defined the wireless network 1. Please introduce yourself and your company. allowing for a transmission over shared antennas.
industry in 2016 are all still in play in 2017.
While that might sound like more of the same, it Jim Parker, Director of Small Cell & IoT Product 3. How proven is your multi-operator product/
can also be thought of as a prelude to 5G. Now is Line Management for Huawei with over 15 years service? Who is using it?
the time when mobile network operators (MNOs) of wireless industry experience is responsible for
are laying the groundwork for the future while Product Management for Huaweis Small Cell and The LampSite Small Cell solution has been deployed
monetising and managing their investments from Internet of Things (IoT) solutions. Prior to joining with over 100 operators in over 1,500 commercial
the past. The trends of densification, virtualisation Huawei, I was responsible for marketing for AT&Ts projects. Deployments include: China National
and optimisation are how they will do so. in-building wireless solutions organisation and for Stadium (the largest stadium in China) and Dubai
None of these trendsdensification, virtualisation, product management and marketing for Samsungs Mall (the largest mall in the world), and Fira
optimisation and convergenceis brand new. But 3G/4G wireless infrastructure, small cell, netbook Barcelona (home to the Mobile World Congress
2017 will see more work being done, and more and notebook product lines. In addition to my Conference) if you want to make a statement,
resources being deployed, for all of them. More cell responsibilities at Huawei, I am the Vice President make sure youre the provider of the wireless
sites, capacity, virtualisation, spectrum and fibre will of the Texas State Wireless Association. solutions at the worlds biggest wireless trade show!
all continue.
2. What product or service have you developed The SingleDAS solution has been deployed with
The one constant in the wireless industry is more. for the multi-operator small cell market, and over 50 operators in over 100 commercial projects.
Users want more bandwidth, MNOs need more under what model does it operate, e.g. multiple Deployments include: Orly Airport in France, Aviva
capacity, and vendors like CommScope are rushing independent small cells, multi-radio cells, using Stadium in Ireland and the Lucerne Railway station
ahead to develop more solutions. While 2017 shared spectrum, using unlicensed spectrum? in Switzerland to name a few.

4. What other use cases do you foresee?
In addition to the LampSite and SingleDAS

solutions mentioned earlier, Huawei offers
the Pico Small Cell which is ideal for small
enterprise (typically less than 5,000 m2) or hotspot Having worked for operators in the past, and seen the operator
applications and supports 3G/4G & Wi-Fi in a single
unit, and Huawei offers the AtomCell for outdoor
applications.
5. What do you see as the potential customer for

funded business model for small cell roll out in high profile buildings,
I now see the opportunity in the thousands if not millions of middle
market buildings

this product/service, MNO, towerco or property
owner?
Small Cells are typically purchased by wireless Our most recent innovation has been in the Neutral
operators, tower companies and property owners. Host space, where we introduced the Viper
platform at MWC2016. It comprises a virtualised
6. Please sum up your vision for multi-operator core, and a range of base stations to support multi-
small cells? operator solutions.
Having worked for operators in the past, and Our primary market is indoor enterprise, but
ip.access
seen the operator funded business model for we have products coming soon to address multi-
small cell roll out in high profile buildings, I 1. Please introduce yourself and your company. operator rural extension. Weve targeted the
now see the opportunity in the thousands if not product set specifically at the Neutral Host provider,
millions of middle market buildings. Whether Im Nick Johnson, Founder, CTO and Head of PLM with lots of management and OSS features to
its multi-dwelling units, commercial offices, of ip.access. Were a UK based small cell specialist, support network management by the Neutral Host
hotels, hospitality, and retail. These venues arent been operating for about 17 years, and deploying provider, and provide visibility of the network
lucrative enough for the MNOs to invest in, but for with Mobile Network Operators since 2003. performance by those sharing the spectrum. It also
the building owners its absolutely critical that they supports the Neutral Host and their Mobile Network
have an in-building wireless solution in order for 2.What product or service have you developed Operator partners by supporting SLA creation and
their customers to be able to utilise their devices. for the multi-operator small cell market, and monitoring.
More and more people are going wireless, were under what model does it operate, e.g. multiple
not going back to the landline, so the next growth independent small cells, multi-radio cells, using 3. How proven is your multi-operator product/
area is to go after this huge untapped market. shared spectrum, using unlicensed spectrum? service? Who is using it?
We had a proof of concept last year, and are getting property owner or even the enterprise tenant, who development of enterprise services definitions
ready for Neutral Host trials within the next month may in the end buy the small cells directly from and business case propositions for customers and
or two. us, using the self-organisation features to facilitate partners. I am a Small Cell Forum Board member
end-user deployment, just as weve achieved with and a Vice Chair of the Services Working Group.
4. What other use cases do you foresee? our residential femto solution deployed with AT&T SpiderCloud Wireless is the innovator behind
in the US. a scalable and multi-access small-cell network
As soon as you have a solution that can support
platform that allows mobile operators to deliver
multiple operators, with the ability to share 6. Please sum up your vision for multi-operator
unprecedented cellular coverage, capacity and
spectrum you open up a cornucopia of new small cells?
smart applications to enterprises and venues.
possibilities. The obvious one is the ability to share
Customers include Amrica Mvil, Verizon Wireless
costs between operators, so they can extend their All in all, its the future. Theres no doubt that
and Vodafone, among others. SpiderCloud Wireless
reach into areas that are currently uneconomic to existing operators are suffering with flat or falling
serve. In emerging low-ARPU markets, that makes revenues, yet with exponentially growing demand, is based in Milpitas, California.
the universal service obligations that much easier and they need an infrastructure sharing solution
to meet, so its better for the operators and the that includes the active equipment as well as 2. What product or service have you developed
government finances alike. Also, in markets with the spectrum to be able to manage their costs, for the multi-operator small cell market, and
MVNOs hosted from a mobile operator, you can while they serve their customers better. As we go under what model does it operate, e.g. multiple
partition the capacity between the host operator forward to 5G, I expect the multi-operator small independent small cells, multi-radio cells, using
and the MVNO, and so increase the value of the cell will become completely mainstream with shared spectrum, using unlicensed spectrum?
offer. And for Emergency Service Networks, you spectrum assets managed by an equivalent to the
can host them from the same equipment as regular neutral host, and network service provided by SpiderCloud builds a scalable small cell Enterprise
commercial networks, and guarantee ESN capacity the Mobile Network Operators becoming purely RAN E-RAN for buildings and commercial spaces
with priority above the commercial service. All in customer facing organisations. We have seen the from 1,000 square meters to 150,000 square meters.
all, its a flexible multi-purpose solution. future, and it works. The E-RAN has small cells available in 3G/LTE, LTE/
LTE (licensed spectrum), and LTE-LAA (licensed
and unlicensed supplemental downlink) in a
this product/service, MNO, towerco or property
number of bands. SpiderCloud is a contributing
owner?
member of the CBRS Alliance (shared spectrum
SpiderCloud in USA market) and the E-RAN system supporting
The customers for the solution are mainly the
Neutral Host provider, but they may take many 3.5Ghz TDD-LTE CBRS small cell system has
forms. The towercos are getting ready to become 1. Please introduce yourself and your company. completed SAS interoperability and is going through
neutral hosts. Some MNOs are looking at monetising commercialisation. SpiderCloud is a contributing
their spectrum assets by sharing them with the Art King, Director of Enterprise Services and member of the MulteFire Alliance (uplink/downlink
competitors, with controlled resource management. Technologies, SpiderCloud Wireless. As the Director in unlicensed spectrum) and will develop products
And the Neutral Host providers customer is the of Enterprise Services & Technologies, I lead the as chipsets emerge. E-RAN can operate in a shared
new ownership models and value chains. These

innovations are going to bring more LTE to many
places that have no service today. These private
LTE networks are going to be federated into the
national networks of todays operators to enable
mobiles to have more coverage and capacity
available without operators totally owning the
Towercos that have an enterprise capex and opex for the private LTE segments. Meetup Europe 2017
sales force, operational capacity, 4-5 April, London
and operator relationships this product/service, MNO, towerco or property
owner?
have a great opportunity in the
enterprise market
All three are candidate customers. With the
lower per square meter construction cost for
small cells, E-RAN has a great business case for
Meetup Americas
2017
smaller buildings where older solutions were just 7-8 June, Boca Raton
too expensive to achieve an ROI for customers
providing the funding.
spectrum model, independent systems sharing
Ethernet transport, and unlicensed. 6. Please sum up your vision for multi-operator Meetup Africa
3. How proven is your multi-operator product/
small cells?
& ME 2017
service? Who is using it? The rapid evolution of small cells and emergence of 3-4 October, Johannesburg
LTE strategies that support shared and unlicensed
Verizon, Vodafone Group, America Movil Group are spectrum are creating a huge opportunity for
publicly disclosed and have many systems in service. transformation and opening an untapped market
Vodafone went commercial with E-RAN in December for business. Towercos that have an enterprise Meetup Asia 2017
2011. sales force, operational capacity, and operator
relationships have a great opportunity in the 12-13 December, Singapore
4. What other use cases do you foresee? enterprise market because the IT organisations
that want LTE in their premise may not be capable
With shared and unlicensed spectrum, there are of operating or maintaining it. The enterprise
innovations around private LTE, Neutral Host world is evolving their thinking about meaning of www.towerxchange.com
LTE, and communications platforms that enable wireless from Wi-Fi to Wi-Fi+LTE
Meet the Europe
tower industry
supply chain
TowerXchange is not only about the views of towerco and
MNO strategists. One of our top priorities is to provide
a platform for proven passive infrastructure equipment
and service to introduce themselves and their activity.
From static asset manufacturers to access control systems,
site management systems, RMS and backup power
solutions, these companies play a critical role in ensuring
the effciency and safety of towercos, MNOs and their
employees.

In this section we gather interviews with a selection of the
top service, solution and equipment manufacturers joining
the TowerXchange Meetup Europe this April.
161 Abloy 179 Intelsat

165 Acsys Technologies Ltd 182 MediPower
168 Beijing Dynamic 185 NorthStar Battery
Power Co., Ltd. 190 Siterra, An Accruent
170 Bladon Jets Product
174 Delmec 193 Tarantula
177 EnerSys 197 Vinson & Elkins
Ensuring European site security: TowerXchange: Please introduce Abloy, your
footprint and your offering to the European
how ABLOYs solutions are fit for a

market
Aaron Yule, Managing Director, ABLOY UK: ABLOY

changing landscape are the leading experts on high quality door/asset
locking and functionality.
Abloys mechatronic master key systems deliver much more than simple
lock and key Our product range includes electric locking, key
cylinders, padlocks, small locks, and associated
Telecom towers are increasingly considered a products to secure the door or asset. Together,
part of critical national infrastructure, and with our solutions offer secure, compliant and lasting
acts of sabotage reported in Sweden in 2016, solutions trusted by organisations throughout
securing telecoms sites has never been more Europe and the rest of the world, across a variety of
industries wherever compromise is not an option.
important. Tower owners need to deal with this
We have the capability to offer a complete security
challenge in addition to combating issues such
solution; from initial surveys and fact finding, to
as internal theft, vandalism and the changing assessments, problem solving and planning through
shape of their infrastructure in the face of 5G to specification.
rollout. Aaron Yule, Managing Director of ABLOY
UK, shared his experiences in the European ABLOY has major MNO customers using its CLIQ
market with us, and explained how these technology in over a dozen European countries, and
challenges can be overcome. an installed base of more than 90,000 locking points
utilising the CLIQ technology mechatronic locks and
Keywords: 5G, ABLOY, Editorial, Europe , Passive keys.
Equipment, Health & Safety , Outdoor Equipment,
Site Visits, Small Cells The high security range from ABLOY is capable of
securing applications ranging from large corporate
headquarters, network buildings, data and media
Read this article to learn: centres, retail outlets, down to the smaller base
< Who ABLOY are and what solutions they offer to the telecom industry stations, gates and equipment cabinets as well as
< What threats are facing European towers at the moment anti-climb hatches, road site cabinets, monopoles,
< How security solutions can drive efficiencies in site management masts, hubs, feeders and chamber pits. All of which
< The role of site security and locking as networks densify ahead of 5G have their own unique security requirements and a
demand for long serviceable life.
The telecoms sector is a dynamic, highly competitive Aaron Yule, Managing Director, ABLOY UK: Carriers the cost of possible system outages and damage to
and fast moving corporate market. Any break or play a central role in fighting emerging security reputation.
interruption to the services caused by physical attack threats. In the future, securing the entire internet
including vandalism, theft or civil disobedience can value chain will be an even bigger priority. Carriers Mechatronic master key systems overcome these
cause serious downtime which will inevitably prove can meet these expectations with a wide array of challenges by not only providing a high level of
costly in reputation and future business. At ABLOY technical and operational innovations. physical security in the key mechanism but also full
we pride ourselves in being able to offer solutions flexibility in the electronic element. System owners
that not only resolve security issues but can also The pressing need for secure networks and high can maintain full control of keys, thereby preventing
provide significant benefit to the customer. service levels is a central challenge that determines any unauthorised access. The full audit trail, from
the suitability of locking solutions for the telecom either key or locking point, enables the owner to
Solutions such as the ABLOY Protec2 CLIQ electronic sector. The locking solutions need to fulfil strict narrow down who has gained access and when to
key systems are designed to meet the needs of security standards and protocols, while maintaining counter the threat of internal theft.
organisations with many off site workers requiring efficient access control to ensure effective
access to many remote sites sometimes shared maintenance of the physical network. TowerXchange: Is tower security in Europe driven
remote sites. To maintain the necessary security by economic factors, or are there regulatory
major organisations are benefitting from the In this case, the overriding challenge involves and governmental pressures to meet certain
following CLIQ features: theft, be it materials or information, which can standards?
< Authorised access to restricted areas for staff and be perpetrated by external and internal parties.
contractors While external theft is usually a costly break-in or Aaron Yule, Managing Director, ABLOY UK:
< Ability to enable/revoke key authorisation a serious act of vandalism, internal theft is a real Successfully maintaining telecom networks poses
remotely and widespread problem as contractors and other a major challenge to locking solutions. Current
< Future proofing capability external partners tend to pay relatively small key requirements may be more economically driven
< Contribution towards asset management and deposits. Lost keys are rarely reported and the however, in the future carriers may have an imposed
asset data reporting percentage of returned keys is often smaller than set of parameters to ensure they are able to continue
< Improved operational efficiency and reduced unreturned. providing high quality, reliable and affordable data
running costs and voice services.
< Time saved and operational efficiencies in key Internal theft often involves either leaving doors
collection, and reduced aborted visits open or keys ending up in the wrong hands. In the Communication networks worldwide depend on
< Full audit trail reports long term, these seemingly minor lapses in security their ability to deliver services 24/7. Any break or
< Deletion of lost/stolen keys can render mechanical locking systems obsolete. interruption to this service caused by vandalism,
< Integration capability (eg. permit to work) The simultaneous expiration of patents for different physical attack or random disruption in the network
< 100% control of all keys, 100% of the time locking systems also increases the risk of keys being will prove costly in reputation and finance. Networks
copied without the system owners knowledge. This also require continuous upkeep and maintenance,
TowerXchange: Can you give us some insight into incurs sizable costs as keys and cylinders need to which should be done fast and cost-effectively.
the threats to security telecom tower owners face be replaced in addition to the loss of equipment
in Europe? What are the most common issues? and wiring. Carriers should also take into account Recent years have seen the importance of the

cell sites; and, customers want a better return on
investment. Todays data and voice services have
to deliver exceptional quality and reliability at an
affordable price, and there are a host of challenges
from markets, consumers, and evolving technologies.
Recent years have seen the importance of the telecoms sector rise to Whether big or small, companies need to reduce
costs, improve quality, and build for flexibility and
the levels of critical national infrastructure and we soon expect to see
various governing bodies start to enforce a certain level of security
standard to ensure satisfactory protection of the operators assets
scalability, all of which affects your choice of locking
solution.
Downward trends in return on invested capital make

profitability a top priority for service providers. This
also makes cost efficiency a key success factor in the
telecom industry.
telecoms sector rise to the levels of critical national for maintenance. For unplanned visits, access can be
Remote granting of access rights by using a
infrastructure and we soon expect to see various granted remotely and in real time, utilising the most
mechatronic locking system minimises operational
governing bodies start to enforce a certain level of local/efficient resource available at the time.
costs as technicians can access towers and repeaters
security standard to ensure satisfactory protection of
more quickly. Indeed, the region based engineer
the operators assets providing the communication Using mechatronic locks in combination with
can become a thing of the past as due to remote
network to society. mechanical ones offers high security levels cost-
programming of keys the entire team could
efficiently. Utilising mechatronic locks to secure
potentially be granted access to any of the locks
The locking solutions of today bring with them a tower premises allows for the full security &
required. This reduces downtime and provides
host of benefits not just in terms of improved system transparency of mechatronic locking. Costs can then
transparency of movement throughout the network.
security but also in financial benefits brought about be optimised by using regular mechanical locks
The latest app based mobile solution allows for
through the investment from greater efficiency and within the premises. Sophisticated mechatronic
instant access requests being decentralised to enable
productivity of personnel, reduced aborted visits, and locking systems, allow the same mechatronic key to
fast authorisation managed locally. With ABLOY
improved management of contractors on site. be used in both the mechatronic locks, as well as the
CLIQ REMOTE audit trail functionality it can be seen
mechanical ones.
when maintenance staff visited the location and
Mechatronic locking systems are equipped with
for how long. For unplanned visits, access can be
an audit trail functionality that allows supervision TowerXchange: Tell us about how Abloy can help
granted remotely and in real time.
of when maintenance staff visit the location and drive efficiencies within telecoms infrastructure.
for how long. Particularly useful since contractors
All locking systems require occasional maintenance
usually charge telecommunication companies based Aaron Yule, Managing Director, ABLOY UK: The
although its rarely carried out. Mechatronic systems
on the number and duration of service visits. With telecom industry is changing rapidly. The market is
allow more effective maintenance management
mechatronic locking, the time and money that was becoming more and more fragmented; big remote
through continual monitoring of lock usage and
used before on key distribution can be efficiently used telecom towers are turning into smaller local
can provide an audit trail of implemented lock there would be a need for more accurate cluster
maintenance. This in turn can improve asset size applications to ensure access into the correct
knowledge and management. enclosure/cabinet. ABLOY has a very long history
with enclosure locking and huge co-operation with
TowerXchange: What is the role of your solutions
Meetup
cabinet manufacturers so potential solutions are
in asset data and reporting? already in place utilising the latest technology
electromechanical key system. Having a piece of
Aaron Yule, Managing Director, ABLOY UK: We can
see that all players in infrastructure sectors have
software that can enable management of these new
locking points will be essential.
Europe 2017
a desire and a need to improve asset management
and the operational data that can then contribute Similarly, there should be some security 4-5 April, Business Design
towards improved operational efficiencies and asset requirements put in place by the industry on these
utilisation. The ABLOY solution can provide a detailed new enclosures / cabinets to ensure they reflect the
Centre, London
asset database by linking locking solutions per site to
privacy and security of data needs relevant to the
a separate asset log.
comms.
ABLOY CLIQ provides a range of data that when

TowerXchange: Can you give us some insight into
integrated with other business systems, including
Abloys vision for the future?
HR, H&S, conformance and compliance training,
can automate operational decisions using rule based
Aaron Yule, Managing Director, ABLOY UK: The
software.
ABLOY vision is to continue to be the World-leading
locking solutions provider.
TowerXchange: How do you see the densification
of networks as 5G rolls out affecting the security of
telecoms infrastructure? To maintain this position we will continue to listen
to the end users in our core markets and understand
Aaron Yule, Managing Director, ABLOY UK: With 5G how our solutions can be developed in conjunction
the whole infrastructure would see a new set of needs with the customers ambitions for security and
being addressed - smaller cell sizes, smaller sites, efficiency.
increase in cabinet usage, new potential locations,
etc (eg street light poles). The number of locking We recognise that this will mean continuing
points will increase dramatically, and nature of the development path from mechanical keys to
A unique networking opportunity with 200 leaders of the
locking will move from a site gate or door to securing electromechanical keys to online keys to the next European telecom and broadcast tower industry
more enclosures and small cabinets. Access needs generation products; and to ensure this journey is
will remain similar however our thoughts are that successful, will be the integration partner to key www.towerxchange.com/meetups/meetup-europe
from an access control management perspective telecoms operators and service providers
Enhanced security and
TowerXchange: Please can you describe some of
the limitations of mechanical locks and keys?
operational efficiencies through Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: There are
several limitations in the use of mechanical locks
improved access control

and keys; keys can be copied, lost and forgotten
or unreturned and the cost of replacing the lock
is often higher than the lock itself. In managing
An interview with leading access control provider - Acsys keys, operators need to employ numerous amounts
of workers who require training and the wrong
keys can be given to the vendor. With traditional
Poor access control can not only lead to
mechanical lock and key there is no way to prevent
security concerns but it can also have
collusion, and users can forget to close sites
a significant impact on a company's (intentionally or not).
operational efficiency and bottom line.
In this interview, we speak to leading Regular audits need to be undertaken to ascertain the
access control system provider, Acsys, to amount of keys in use and the keys location and the
management of keys and locks requires dedicated
understand how the telecom tower industry
space and security. Managing keys on weekends or
has been affected by poorly managed access
during an emergency is a problem as staff will not
control and discuss the advantages that be present, it is critical to be able to respond quickly
mechatronic locks can bring to the sector. to downed sites but if access is prevented in the
absence of keys then the only way is to cut the locks
which will require a lock replacement and sites can
Keywords: Access Control, Acsys, Africa, Health & Safety, Job Ticketing, KPIs, Logistics, Masts &
stay unsecured for quite some time
Towers, MLA, MNOs, Monitoring & Management, NOC, O&M, Operational Excellence, RMS, Site
Level Profitability, Site Surveys, Site Visits, SLA, Towercos
When keys are copied it is difficult to detect when a
theft or loss occurs and with picking and bumping
there is no proof of break and entry and as such
Read this article to learn: there are high insurance premiums. The result of
< Limitations with mechanical locks these inefficiencies is that some vendors eventually
< Challenges in controlling access to NOCs make their own copies of the keys to gain access.
< The importance of access control in enforcing SLAs
< How mechatronic locks can contribute to increased efficiency TowerXchange: In relation to controlling access
< Safety and security benefits afforded by mechatronic locks and NOCs, what are some of the operational
challenges faced?
Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: The The lack of data prevents an operator from setting management solution
NOC deals with a complex set of equipment that operational KPIs to benchmark the performance of
is scattered around a region and is impossible to the various vendors between each other. The fact TowerXchange: What are some of the basic
control efficiently with mechanical locks. The NOC that there is no or little data from the performance practical advantages of mechatronic locks?
also deals with a large amount of vendors, who are on the SLA also means that the NOC and operator
responsible for site maintenance. It is hard for the need to rely on the vendor to obtain performance Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: The
NOC to respond efficiently to emergencies as they information which creates a conflict of interest. solution is a standard padlock and Euro-Din cylinder
dont know where the vendors are located and false SLAs fees are being paid when the services that configuration meaning that no modifications are
alarms can cause disorder. need to be provided arent being carried out. required to install them. The padlocks and cylinders
Vendors invoke the problems of collecting and can be fitted on all equipment and no maintenance
Access to the NOC is impossible to control. Vendors returning keys as a valid reason for non-compliance is required. The stainless steel plating prevents
are requested to do maintenance and only do it when with SLAs. corrosion on the padlock body and cylinder and
they are able to do it, not necessarily when the NOC whats more anyone can use the solution.
has requested that they do it. When sites are down TowerXchange: What are the advantages of
it can be difficult to find the vendor, the NOC then implementing mechatronic locks for remote site The operational advantages of using mechatronic
needs to call other support to get someone to the site management? locks are instantly visible after deployment and
lasting over time, uptime is increased and the
The NOC is looking for a solution whereby tickets Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: solution prevents keys being copied, stolen, lost
are issued and acted upon as quickly as possible in a Mechatronic locking systems cannot be picked/ or unreturned, locks being picked, issues around
first phase. In a second phase the NOC needs to know bumped, hacked, copied or corrupted in any way. collecting and returning keys, the requirements for
when the vendor has arrived, what he has done, Telecom customised software enables the NOC to lock and key audits and unauthorised access.
whether the problem is fixed and when he has left manually or automatically control where users can
the site. NOC operations need to rely solely on the go, for how long wirelessly and in real-time with TowerXchange; How do mechatronic locks
vendors assertions minimal cost. contribute to increased efficiency?
TowerXchange: What challenges can poor access Mechatronic solutions allow the NOC to control Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: Users can
control systems have on SLA implementation and precisely what assets can be opened and when. All service more sites in one day and a users position
adherence? keys and locks memorise the last thousand actions and length on site is controlled and monitored. The
giving an incorruptible record of the users actions, NOC can have a real-time view of site status looking
Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: MNOs and providing the NOC and operator with valuable at the number of sites, which sites have guards and
towercos will have SLAs in place with their vendors operational data. are they present or not, which site is in need of
to regulate site maintenance. These SLAs have maintenance and for what reason and which and
escalation clauses that dictate when a vendor should The mechatronic locks combine four important how many vendors are on the site.
arrive on location. It is hard for the NOC to see when solutions into one system; a wireless and real-time
vendors are going to the sites and if they completed access control system, a high security lock and key By implementing mobile apps, the NOC is now
the job correctly making SLAs redundant. solution, a time and attendance solution and a key able to receive real-time site information and user
performance, such as when did the user receive TowerXchange: What information can be data that mechatronic locking systems provide
the task, accept the task, arrive on and leave the collected to monitor behavioural patterns and effectively will lead to more efficient access
site. This system can also monitor what the user did how does this translate into more cost effective policies, enhanced SLA agreements and increased
on the site (watermark GPS pictures) and can also operations? productivity. The data collected does not only benefit
receive information on whether the user closed the the site owner, but is also valuable for tenants and
locks after leaving the site. Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: The NOC vendors. The data helps build relationships between
will be able to download the access logs stored on the the ecosystem by aiding their understanding
This data has significant value to determine SLA key through programmers and study what sites or and giving evidence of site activities. The more a
adherence because the tower owner can now see assets were accessed and when, how long the vendor database is built and the further it is integrated the
exactly what is happening on their site. Being able spent on each site, whether the user tried to access more valuable it becomes to its users
to understand who is going where and for how long sites or assets without authorisation and on which
means that the owner can make smarter business day, time or location.
decisions. Data collected by mechatronic locks gives
concrete undisputable data on whether the vendor By collecting data on user performance the NOC and
has been meeting the SLAs. Furthermore upon operator are now able to obtain site maintenance
additional analysis of the data, site operators can benchmarks which in turn allow them to set KPIs for Meetup Europe 2017
create and negotiate more suitable SLAs using the certain tasks.
information collected. 4-5 April, London
In addition, mechatronic locks allow for increased
TowerXchange: How do mechatronic locks
increase site and user security and reduce theft?
flexibility. When a technician is unavailable, another
can be called as a substitute with no wasted time
Meetup Americas
Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: With
or resources. A temporary access can be instantly
granted on the fly for a site normally outside of this
2017
regards to safety and security, as the NOC knows technicians work zone. 7-8 June, Florida
who is on the site and for what reason, in the case a
vendor does not request a locking code (because of a
fall or injury) the NOC is able to act on that.
By collecting data on behavioural patterns, the
financial department is also able to control how
Meetup Africa 2017
much time was spent on site by users, thereby 3-4 October, Johannesburg
In relation to thefts, most thefts are caused by people gaining a better control over payment of billable
who had a mechanical key at one stage and copied it.
The mechatronic keys can have an embedded feature
hours to vendors.
Meetup Asia 2017
that monitors where the key is being used, if the user TowerXchange: How will the data that 12-13 December, Singapore
tries to fraudulently use the key three times, the key mechatronic locks provide influence the way in
will automatically block themselves thereby forcing which the telecoms sector works?
the user to go back to the NOC or programmer to www.towerxchange.com
update his key. Olivier Meganck, VP Sales, Africa, Acsys: Using the
Chinas leading telecom power
TowerXchange: Please can you introduce Beijing
Dynamic Power to those unfamiliar with the
company. Where does the company fit in the
supply company looks globally telecoms infrastructure ecosystem?
Beijing Dynamic Power Companys extensive and high efficiency product offering Thomas Liu, Deputy Director, Sales, Beijing Dynamic
Power Co.: Beijing Dynamic Power Co., Ltd. (DPC for
Arguably the largest name in energy short) is a leading manufacturer of telecom power
equipment provision to the telecom supply equipment in Beijing China. The company
industry in China, with such accolades was established in 1995, the first public company in
as being the number one supplier to the power supply industry in China, and underwent
China Tower Company, Beijing Dynamic an IPO in 2004 (Shanghai Stock Exchange Code:
Power (DPC) boasts a diverse product 600405), the open market value is over US$800mn.
offering with strong R&D, high efficiency The group has five wholly-owned companies
and customer service at the heart of its with a total of over 3000 employees including 400
offerings. TowerXchange speak to the R&D engineers in three R&D centres. Our main
company to discover more about its high production base is 330,000m2, with production
efficiency solutions and their suitability to capacity of 80,000 pcs rectifiers and 15,000 sets
systems per month. DPC has nearly 30% market
the global telecom industry.
share in China and are the number one supplier
Keywords: Beijing Dynamic Power, Capex, to China Tower Company (CTC). DPC have been
China Tower Company, DPC, Energy, committed to supplying power solutions for the
Energy Efficiency, Infrastructure Sharing, telecoms sector and a wide range of rectifiers for
Microgeneration, O&M, Off-Grid, On-Grid, telecom integrated system suppliers in the telecoms
Opex Reduction, Rectifiers, RMS, Unreliable infrastructure ecosystem for the past 21 years.
Thomas Liu, Deputy Director, Sales, Beijing Dynamic Power Co. Grid, Whos Who
TowerXchange: How extensive is the companys
experience? How many systems are deployed
in the field? What is the companys geographic
< DPCs scale and depth of experience in the supply of power equipment to the telecom industry
footprint and who are some of your key clients?
< The companys wide product offering applicable to the sector
< How a focus on R&D is driving higher efficiency and cost-competitive solutions
< Features of DPCs products which are ideally suited to multi-tenant applications Thomas Liu, Deputy Director, Sales, Beijing Dynamic
< DPCs RMS platform, its compact design and ease of operation Power Co.: DPC has been the leading mainstream
power supplier in the Chinese telecommunications
industry for years. DPC has created hundreds of conditions, which will ensure the system is always key data of each tenant, helping the towercos
different power products and supplied a huge working at the highest efficiency point, aiming to effectively manage tower sharing.
number of solutions to worldwide customers, reduce energy loss.
covering the entire range of power requirements; TowerXchange: With many sites in remote
very large power systems, medium power indoor Customers use our high efficiency products to locations, how does DPCs solution allow
systems, compact rack-mounted systems, wall- cut capex and reduce energy consumption. The for effective monitoring and what kind of
mounted type, remote DC powering solutions, extremely high deployment level of our products maintenance is required?
modular outdoor systems, mini outdoor power cells, globally over a number of years is testament to the
hybrid power system et cetera. high reliability of our products and demonstrates Thomas Liu, Deputy Director, Sales, Beijing
their performance in the field. Dynamic Power Co.: DPCs remote integrated
Over 500,000 systems within 2,400,000 rectifier intelligent monitoring system (RMS) can effectively
modules are operating on MNO and towerco Our high efficiency rectifier modules rating monitor and manage power systems located in
networks globally. Our products are highly range from 48VDC 1kW, 2kW, 3kW to 6kW with remote sites globally through an online user-
regarded by our esteemed telecom customers a high efficiency performance approaching friendly management interface, typically based
globally such as China Tower, China Mobile, China 97%. Meanwhile along with DPCs continuous on Ethernet communication by wireless channel.
Unicom, China Telecom, Telecom Italia, MTS, STC, investment in and development of cutting edge, An all-in-one compact design with multi-ports and
Ethio Telecom, Tanzania Telecom, LG U+, Sri Lanka energy efficiency technology with fully independent a highly-integrated 19 rack-mounted type core
Telecom, Lao Telecom, Nepal Telecom and Yemen IP rights, we will soon release higher efficiency monitoring unit enables low cost maintenance with
Telecom amongst others. products (approaching 98% efficiency) to help easy operation.
our customers reduce the capex and opex of their
TowerXchange: How is Beijing Dynamic Power networks. TowerXchange: Finally, please can you sum up
able to help towercos and operators tackle how you differentiate Beijing Dynamic Power
escalating energy costs at cell sites across Africa? TowerXchange: How scalable is your solution for from your competitors?
What kind of efficiency improvements can be the addition of further tenants at sites?
obtained? Thomas Liu, Deputy Director, Sales, Beijing
Thomas Liu, Deputy Director, Sales, Beijing Dynamic Dynamic Power Co.: DPC is committed to
Thomas Liu, Deputy Director, Sales, Beijing Power Co.: DPCs power solution is specialised the continuous design and manufacture of
Dynamic Power Co.: Based on the idea of in catering for multi-tenant use. Every tenants innovative and competitive products with robust
environmental protection and energy savings, DPC power consumption is metered by an individual reliability, customer-oriented flexibility and
developed a series of high efficiency rectifiers with energy meter which is individually monitored highly competitive prices to bring benefits to our
typical technology such as Intelligent Directional and managed by the system controller without customers and partners. We listen to our customers
Dormancy, by which the power system will tenants interfering with each other. DPCs multi- needs and ensure that we understand them,
automatically choose the normal-working high tenant management and LVD individual solution making sure that we are around for support from
efficiency modules in the case of mix-use module can record the different power consumption and the very beginning
Jet powered microturbine gensets TowerXchange: Where do Bladon Jets fit in the
telecoms infrastructure ecosystem?
offer a more efficient alternative to Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets:
We have invested considerably in R&D over the last
traditional DGs 5 years and perfected the design and manufacture
of low cost jet powered microturbine gensets
Innovative solution is more cost effective, cleaner, greener, quieter, burns just about any
(MTGs). Our MTGs are positioned to replace diesel
liquid or gas fuel and breaks even compared with DGs after approximately 15 months generators as the primary or backup power solution
at cell sites, thanks to our superior performance and
Its not often TowerXchange comes across a genuinely reliability. Bladons MTGs are ultra quiet, clean and
innovative alternative to a traditional diesel genset that provides green, small and light, which is critical at shared
primary or backup power to many emerging market cell towers, cell sites.
but when we heard about Bladon Jets micro turbine gensets
(MTG), we had to find out more! While the MTG is cleaner and Jet engines arent new. This is a 70 year old
quieter than a traditional DG, with almost no maintenance technology, and is the power of choice at 40,000ft.
requirements, what makes the MTG particularly interesting to Our secret sauce is not so much a new technology
towercos is the fact that they are more efficient and are cleaner as a manufacturing methodology that enables
and quieter than a similar powered DG. Delivering cleaner us to produce microturbines economically in
and more efficient energy are key business requirements we volume. One of our most important manufacturing
Stuart Kelly, Bladon Jets
continuously see from mobile operators and towercos. techniques is a process to cut turbine blades from
a single piece of material. Our units are about 30%
smaller than a diesel generator, yet they generate
Keywords: Africa, Asia, Bladon Jets, Capex, DG Runtime, Energy, Fuel Cell, Hybrid Power, Off-Grid, Opex
Reduction, RMS, ROI, Rooftop, Shelters, Site Visits, Skilled Workforces, Solar, Spare Parts, Unreliable Grid, the same power. Weve been able to manufacture to
Uptime, Whos Who a price point such that our MTGs are commercially
viable compared to reciprocating diesel gensets.
Read this article to learn: TowerXchange: How did your micro jet engines
< How Bladon Jets harnessed the power of choice at 40,000ft for static power solutions evolve as a solution for cell sites?
< The size and weight advantages of MTGs over traditional DGs
< A low maintenance solution: no oil, no water, only one big moving part Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets:
< The importance of an energy efficient solution that compliments your existing supply chain MTGs TATA became excited about our micro turbines
can run on almost any liquid or gas fuel and invested via Jaguar Land Rover in 2010. The
< Months to breakeven/crossover in different scenarios, compared with traditional DGs first incarnation was actually in the Jaguar CX75
concept supercar, but the ancillary application of
the technology was for static power solutions for
telecoms.
We are finalising our market entry strategy to sell

12kW MTGs into telecoms. For us the towercos,
managed service providers and MNOs themselves
are all prospective clients.
TowerXchange: Which telecom markets are you

targeting and why?
Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets:

Given the Tata connection, an early market will be
India. The continent of Africa is also a key market
for Bladons products. We have conducted field
trials in Africa over the last few months and learned
valuable feedback from our partners there. Some
of our field trial units have been running nonstop
for 1000+ hours without ANY filter changes or
servicing. Thats a really compelling proposition to
towercos that are crippled with genset maintenance
costs.
Clean, green and ultra low maintenance makes the MTG most attractive for telecom sites
We have attended TowerXchange Meetups around TowerXchange: Tell us about your solutions with the potential to dramatically reduce site visits
the world to share Bladons vision with MNOs and maintenance requirements. can be very compelling. There is a very low skill
towercos. With so many assets changing ownership requirement to maintain our MTGs in the highly
in Africa, there is a new focus and financial drive Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets: unlikely event of a turbine failure, our strategy is
to leverage tower assets harder. When towers are Microturbine engines are a low or no maintenance remove and replace, not rebuild onsite. For lesser
bought, or being prepared for sale, audits often solution. Unlike a diesel reciprocating engine, there maintenance issues, such as filter changes, the O&M
reveal the assets arent operating as efficiently as is no oil and no liquid coolant in our solution. We subcontractor can readily maintain a stock of fuel
the owner might have thought. But the new owners have just one moving part, the turbine itself, which and air filters.
dont want to create too much turbulence in the runs on air bearings with no liquid lubrication.
supply chain, so its important that our solution Maintenance is a key issue at remote sites that As well as reducing fuel and maintenance costs,
complements the existing energy supply chain in might be many hours drive on a lousy road the thieves are less inclined to steal our MTGs as
developing markets. cost to get there can kill the TCO so a technology there are few if any parts they can recycle.

Aspiring ESCOs that are currently in the business
of maintaining traditional diesel gensets have an
opportunity to profit handsomely by deploying
a more reliable solution like ours their goal of
selling at a price per kWh rate becomes more
compelling. Our MTG unit has robust telemetry
built in, so you need fewer field engineers as many
settings can be changed remotely. From the NOC
you can see if units are operating outside of their
We dont see our solution as an alternative to a 200sqm PV
array; our solution is so much more compact that the use cases
differ significantly

tolerances, enabling preventive maintenance
rather than waiting for it to break. Also, and not
insignificant for the tower operator, is the use
of telemetry to know where the unit is as well
as having the inbuilt electronics to stop the unit alternative to a 200sqm PV array; our solution is local fuel supply resource. Bladon gensets, in
operating if moved without permission the same so much more compact that the use cases differ keeping with all turbine based solutions, run on a
technology as a tracker system on a car. significantly. Solar isnt the optimum alternate wide range of fuels, including green alternatives
energy solution for all cell sites; even in Africa, such as natural gas and biofuels as well as diesel
TowerXchange: Okay, so what are the advantages sites dont get good quality sunshine all the time, and kerosene. Bladon MTGs will also tolerate a
of micro jet engines over other alternate energy especially in high rise areas with shadows. You can blend of fuels like diesel mixed with kerosene thus
solutions such as fuel cells or solar? install solar panels on an urban rooftop, and find making the mix useless for thieves planning on
that six months later the neighboring building has using it for other diesel engines.
Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets: had five floors added! Our solution doesnt succumb
There is no reliable or sustainable supply chain to such vagaries. Solar has to be a part of the future, TowerXchange: How does the capital outlay for
to support hydrogen or methane fuel in Africa but in the context of telecom towers its not a killer your MTGs compare to traditional DGs, and
yet. As a technology that is hostile to the current app, its a point solution. Our MTGs can be used when does the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
supply chain, the practical challenges of keeping to smooth power from solar as well as replacing crossover?
fuel cells running are prohibitive to embracing that a chugging tractor engine based generator. When
particular alternative energy solution in more than renewables work the MTG can become a part core Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets:
perhaps 20% of the estate. Lets be honest, green part backup, there are no startup issues even if its The capital outlay for an MTG is currently slightly
power is not widely used on cell sites. In India for left idle for some considerable time between use. higher than a quality diesel genset solution, but
example, eco-friendly cell sites account for less The fuel will contaminate before the genset has a the price difference is a double not triple digit
than 1% of the estate, but tower owners still want to problem! percentage. Running for 12 hours a day in SSA in
migrate away from the reciprocating diesel genset 30 heat then within 15-19 months the TCO will
because of the substantial energy and maintenance But the important thing is that this is an evolution crossover having recovered the difference in capital
opex it incurs. We dont see our solution as an not a revolution the MTG can be adapted to any outlay through fuel and maintenance cost savings.
TowerXchange: How near are your MTGs for tenant without upgrading the MTG. Because our

telecom to being a market-ready solution? unit doesnt de-rate over time, its ability to deliver
continuous power is stronger. The MTG is a more
Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets: reliable means of delivery of consistent power
We go into production later this year. The first than a conventional DG for a multi-tenant site. If
run of MTGs have already been ordered, and additional tenants are added beyond what one MTG
weve signed distribution agreements already can provide, the answer is to add a second unit in a We go into production later
with partners in Africa and India. Well be daisy chain. And if the power requirement reduces
manufacturing in the UK, and in Asia soon too, and again, our units are relatively easy to relocate this year. The first run of
from the US in due course. to another tower. Another critical consideration
is that the MTG can be 25% more efficient as a
MTGs have already been
TowerXchange: What is the sweet spot in terms reciprocating engine when running at part load. ordered, and weve signed
of the load your solutions can support?

Our Bladon MTG12 MTG delivers up to 12kW, with
output options 230V AC or 120V AC. We also have a
48V DC output variant that telecom clients tend to
TowerXchange: How do you bring Bladon Jets to
market do you sell direct or through channel
partners?

distribution agreements
already with partners in
Africa and India

like. Most telecom sites need somewhere between Our model is to sell through partners. Towercos and
3kW and 6kW for constant power, maybe 9kW if MNOs need the credibility of boots on the ground
there is a hybrid arrangement requiring battery to provide after sales service, even with a low
bank charging. Since the MTG runs at variable maintenance solution such as ours. We are targeting technology in jet engines, then developed a
speed to match the load our efficiencies are much key managed service providers on the front lines of manufacturing process to bring to market an
better at partial loads compared to traditional DGs tower builds, upgrades and maintenance, with the innovative solution with a lower TCO business case
objective of creating a pipeline for thousands of unit for telecom tower operators. Micro jet engines are
TowerXchange: How do you ensure modularity sales. ultra reliable, super durable, low maintenance,
as power requirements increase with the and generally have a TCO runway in Africa and
addition of multiple tenants? TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how you India from 9 to 19 months. The MTG is designed
would differentiate Bladon Jets from other cell to support the current supply chain, which means
Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon Jets: site energy solution providers. our solutions can be easily introduced with an
Given that operators are trying to drive power expectation of a short term payback. The fact that
consumption down, a new BTS might need 1kW Stuart Kelly, VP Market Development, Bladon its an exciting jet engine is only so interesting
when the last model needed 2kW. At the moment Jets: Weve taken a well known form of power what matters is reducing fuel bills, and the ability
the applications we see dont consume more the generation in the reciprocating engine, turned it on to deploy it into the field easier and cheaper than a
3kW in total, so it should be possible to add a second its head and married it with another established regular diesel genset
The truth behind your assets TowerXchange: Tell us about Delmecs current
footprint and key markets.
What you need to know about whose equipment is hanging on your towers, Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering:
and how safe they are Our company is based in Ireland, with an interest in
the UK marketplace, Europe and projects in Africa,
Asia and the Middle East. Central America, India
With asset registers incomplete or out of date and Russia are entry markets for us at the moment.
in many parts of the world, tower owners are We have six core offerings in which we are very
active including structural engineering and
getting a shock when it comes to the capacity
design, a network management solution, an in-
of their structures, the safety of the sites and, house project management tool with a GPS core,
most shockingly, the legitimacy of the hardware installations, steelwork and structures, renewable
hanging from their towers. Spencer Crawford- energy and fibre.
White from Delmec talks us through some of Were also developing two additional subsets;
the major challenges tower owners face in network management and a training suite. In
managing their assets and how a tower portfolio markets such as Africa and India its expensive to
put our resources in the field, so we have developed
Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering can be brought back into line.
five dedicated courses where well train local
contractors in the field for our clients. We havent
Keywords: Interview, Monitoring & Management, East Africa, Southern Africa, West Africa, Europe, launched this service yet but weve been getting a
Delmec, O&M, Construction, Installation, Investment, Capex, Due Diligence, Opex Reduction, Co- huge amount of interest, Id say its probably our
locations, Infrastructure Sharing, Capacity Enhancements, Health & Safety, Bankability, Site Level most popular solution at this point in time.
Profitability, Operational Excellence, Off-Grid, Unreliable Grid, ROI, Site Visits, Site Surveys, Asset
Register, Masts & Towers
TowerXchange: What are the core capabilities
which Delmec offers to the tower industry?
Read this article to learn: Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering:

< The most common hurdles faced by tower owners in terms of updating and maintaining an The highest priority for us at the moment is our
asset register training suite, its a unique offering in the market
< How to bring an asset register back up to 100% accuracy and one which will enable our clients to work more
< How and when tower portfolios should be audited effectively. The assessment and certification of
< The benefits of certification to investment, expenditure and business development structures and people is our core capability its
what we do best. Theres a certain synergy and

Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering:
They do not adhere to maintenance and routine
recording. Not just Africa. Globally. Every single
company weve spoken to has terrible trouble
with their assets. The might have an idea of what
they have from a purchase ledger, but they dont
know what they have in each location from a
Every single company weve spoken to has terrible trouble with their safety or structural capacity perspective. The
assets. The might have an idea of what they have from a purchase more weve gone to Africa and started helping,
the more interest weve had from their European
ledger, but they dont know what they have in each location from a
safety or structural capacity perspective
counterparts, which leads us to believe that even
assets there dont have as good a set of records as
possible.
Maintaining sites generally is a big issue globally

both in terms of the the structure and recording
whats on it. Most site providers we do physical
reviews for are surprised by the equipment on
efficiency in what we offer - were not the cheapest separated. The headache of leases and planning their towers. There are huge implications for lost
but we could be if we combine all of our offerings isnt interesting to an MNO and towercos can do it revenue and also significant safety concerns if
together for our clients. What we offer is the means on a bigger and more specialised scale. People have you dont have a handle on whats hanging on
to get the job done right first time, and we can also been buying networks for 20 years now, but I think your towers. Unregistered equipment hanging
reduce timescales allowing sites to introduce other towercos are now doing it on a greater scale than on towers is a huge loss in terms of selling space
solutions quicker, which can have an enormous cost before. Its a good time for them as acquisitions are and generating cash. Its mostly down to poor
impact. cheaper at the moment due to the downturn in the record keeping but theres also the odd opportunist
global economy. It means costs have gone down but smaller radio broadcasters or broadband
TowerXchange: Where does Delmec see the on the other hand insurance premiums have gone microwave solution companies who might have
biggest growth in the tower industry taking up because people arent spending the same on reached a private arrangement with the land owner
place over the next few years? safety and structures as they ought to. where the site is located. They sometimes steal
power too, which of course is the biggest cost to
Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering: TowerXchange: Given Delmecs track record in infrastructure managers in Africa due to the lack of
The African market needs to build more structures auditing asset registers, what would you say is reliable grid provision.
but overall the global market will move towards the most common problem which towercos and
the independent towerco business model, meaning MNOs face in creating and maintaining accurate TowerXchange: How would you go about
youll have infrastructure owners and MNOs totally asset registers? rectifying problems with an asset register?

Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering:
The main reason were employed is because at
the starting point, towercos dont even know
what theyve got. Theyll do an audit on 10% of
the proposed buy before an acquisition and ask
The site owner is the responsible person whether they are
questions like can you get there? Is there a tower?
Has it got a fence and does it look okay? No other
information comes back, not even photos in most
cases. When we go out weve often got nothing
beyond co-ordinates and a theoretical size of
independent owners, towercos or mobile network operators. They
are responsible for recording and auditing their assets, and most
importantly for safety

structure. They might have pictures of 10% of the
towers if were lucky. So although they have almost
nothing initially, we help them pull that to 100% for
every site, we help them assess every tower. everyone wants gold level certification once they auditing service and why is it important? When
have committed the time and funds to the upgrades. is it most effective to review an asset register?
How do we rectify problems? We train local people, They can take the certificates to the bank for
show them how to do it efficiently, do structural investment for the future as our certificates are well Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering:
analysis and give them a RAG report (Red Amber known in the market. The site owner is the responsible person whether
Green). In Europe we give a 40 page technical they are independent owners, towercos or
report, in Africa we give four pages because thats TowerXchange: So tell us about the full benefits mobile network operators. They are responsible
the level of detail each market needs. Our database of certification? for recording and auditing their assets, most
maps that with pie charts in the same colour so we importantly for safety keeping an accurate
keep track of it all. Spencer Crawford-White, CTO, Delmec Engineering: accident register is vital. Commercially, of course,
A reduction in insurance premiums, ability to its also critical.
Part of our solution is to arrive at a certificate of increase borrowings, getting a higher (and more
conformity when we know 100% that the site is reliable) calibre of customer. MTN, Tigo or Vodafone When should they be reviewed? If you look at the
okay. We will give clients a report detailing what want to protect their assets and theyre looking for standards it ranges across the type and location
and how to improve, then we will sign off on a local something of this standard, which is important to of a structure. Yearly inspection should really be
contractor for them, then certify the structure on a ensure their SLAs are met. Its also very useful for the norm, but certain clients could see that every
scale from gold to white. For gold certification we further investigation we receive a 40% return rate couple of years is enough. Some might leave it
go and inspect the site ourselves, silver is checked of business, so having that data in our system means five years but in our experience its a lot cheaper
by one of our approved contractors, bronze is it can be very quick for us to help customers know and more effective to keep on top of problems as
certified by the clients contractor and for white how they can maximise their assets. they arise than to wait for something serious and
certification the client details what they have risk having to make major repairs or even replace
done and we take their word for it. Unsurprisingly TowerXchange: Who should use an asset register infrastructure
Backing up European towers: TowerXchange: Please introduce EnerSys, your
footprint and your offering to the European
market.
EnerSys sophisticated battery solutions
Sabine Lejeune, Sales Director - Telecom market
Creating bespoke backup solutions for European tower owners, Enersys is supporting a
EMEA and Reserve Power France, EnerSys:
rapidly changing industry EnerSys is the global leader in stored energy
solutions for industrial applications. We
With variables in location, manufacture and distribute reserve power and
climate, budget, maintenance and motive power batteries, battery chargers, power
deployment, choosing the right equipment, battery accessories and outdoor
equipment enclosure solutions to customers
battery and cooling options to
worldwide.
keep total cost of ownership to a
minimum is tricky. EnerSys talk us Reserve power batteries are used in the
through their experiences of the telecommunication and utility industries,
European market and how they uninterruptible power supplies, and numerous
work with customers to choose the applications requiring stored energy solutions
most efficient solutions to meet including medical, aerospace and defense systems.
their customers requirements. Outdoor equipment enclosure products are
utilised in the telecommunication, cable, utility,
Keywords: Editorials, EnerSys, transportation industries and by government and
Energy, Europe, Fuel Cell, defense customers.
Netherlands, Off-Grid, Opex
Reduction, Russia, SLA, Unreliable For the telecom market, EnerSys offers an
Sabine Lejeune, Sales Director - Telecom market EMEA
Grid, Uptime extensive portfolio of premium flooded and sealed
and Reserve Power France, EnerSys
batteries to serve the industry. This portfolio of
batteries offers design features such as exceptional
Read this article to learn: performance, long life, compact footprint, high
< How far EnerSys footprint extends in Europe energy density, and ease of installation. Our
< How the European backup power market differs from the rest of the world batteries are ideally suited for a wide range
< What capital expenditure will deliver the greatest TCO savings of wireline and wireless telecom applications,
< How 5G rollout and densification will affect European power needs including central office and outside plant. We also
offer outdoor equipment enclosure solutions.
TowerXchange: Can you give us some insight many European countries, why is it so important and then decide. One solution does not necessarily
into how you find the European market? How for tower owners to think about sophisticated meet all scenarios.
does it differ from the other markets you power solutions?
operate in? TowerXchange: Looking forward, what do you
Sabine Lejeune, Sales Director - Telecom market think will be the power priorities for European
Sabine Lejeune, Sales Director - Telecom market EMEA and Reserve Power France, EnerSys: There tower owners as 5G and network densification
EMEA and Reserve Power France, EnerSys: In are still network incidents even in Europe, so power requirements increase?
Europe we have a large number of operators. solutions are a necessary backup for the electrical
This has driven fierce competition between communications networks. Last year the European Sabine Lejeune, Sales Director - Telecom market
stakeholders over the last five years and most of Network Information and Security Agency (ENISA*) EMEA and Reserve Power France, EnerSys: The 5G
the European operators have seen their revenues reported that power cuts constitute 17% of the standards are still not agreed but if one gives a hint
declining. electrical communications incidents in Europe. to the tower companies it would be to follow the
evolving infrastructure needs. In general, one should
When we think about tower market dynamics, one In order to support our customers with the best also follow up the increase of data in the network,
area to note is changing tower ownership. Europe, fitted batteries for their application, EnerSys has the energy efficiency of the tower equipment and the
at least in some areas (Russia, Southern Europe and made total cost of ownership tools for batteries and overall construction of the telecom network.
the Netherlands) is heading towards the towerco enclosures where we can input key parameters such
model. In Africa this change already happened as the temperature of the city, the choice of batteries TowerXchange: Can you give us some insight into
several years ago. In Africa now, some operators with different design life options and other factors, EnerSys vision for the future and how you will fit
are showing interest to potentially enter back into and the choice of cabinet (with air conditioning or into this evolving market?
the tower maintenance/owning model. Also we find free cooling) so that we can choose the most efficient
that discussions about ESCO models are popping up solution to meet our customers requirements. Sabine Lejeune, Sales Director - Telecom market
again, so these changes are obviously addressing EMEA and Reserve Power France, EnerSys:
some interesting dynamics and questions: who TowerXchange: For European tower owners The quality of experience in using mobile
today is your actual customer and how may this looking to manage OPEX, what capital communications is very important. The mobile
change in the near future? expenditure will deliver the most effective TCO network is dependent on available power and
savings? backup when need be. EnerSys is a powerful solution
Operators now need to concentrate on 5G. The provider and a trusted partner in backup power
towers may be part of the infrastructure they need Sabine Lejeune, Sales Director - Telecom market solutions. We want to help and continually support
to externalise, so we believe that the towercos may EMEA and Reserve Power France, EnerSys: We can the tower companies to back up their mission critical
grow their presence in the region. We will support only talk about the power solutions we provide, equipment
them with the most available and solutions. batteries and enclosures but as mentioned it is
* Source Acknowledgment from Annual Incident Reports 2015
important to look at the case through a more
https://www.enisa.europa.eu/publications/annual-incident-
TowerXchange: With reliable grid access in so sophisticated lens and work with real parameters reports-2015
Space odyssey - TowerXchange: Please introduce Intelsat, your
history and the companys footprint in Europe
how satellite backhaul is improving Joost Hageman, Senior Principal Marketing Manager,
Intelsat: Intelsat was founded over 50 years ago as
terrestrial infrastructure the worlds first provider for commercial satellite

communications services and our reach is global
Intelsat offer satellites for high performance data connectivity across the globe rather than only covering Europe.
The company still is the largest operator in terms of

Commercial satellite
revenue, capacity and geographic reach, with over
communications provider Intelsat
60% of its revenues generated by serving Mobile
is the largest company of its kind
Networks and VSAT Operators.
in the world. In this interview,
Joost Hageman, Senior Principal Intelsats global network delivers efficient data-
Marketing Manager, shares connectivity arrangements allowing for a rapid
his insights into how satellite extension of high-speed mobile broadband to
communications can be used to hundreds or thousands of sites. Cell Backhaul via
complement telecoms infrastructure, Satellite scales extremely well where the business
the best and most efficient solutions case for terrestrial connectivity solutions is currently
absent or not attractive. With its roots in the
for deployment and how satellite
telecom-sector Intelsat engineers closely liaise with
services can support small cell and
operators and their infrastructure-partners, keen to
densification efforts both in urban develop and drive new revenue streams with them
and rural areas. while ensuring effective, flexible, secure and reliable
communications.
Keywords: 5G, Backhaul & FTTT, Core Network, Europe, Infill, Intelsat, Small Cells, Urban vs Rural
We believe that Intelsat EpicNG next generation
satellite technology seven High Throughput
Read this article to learn: Satellites (HTS) by 2018 is a game changer for the
< Intelsats history and offering to the telecoms infrastructure industry sector. The Epic satellites were specifically designed
< How Intelsats solutions are working in the field to provide high performance data connectivity for
< How the European market is responding to satellite solutions mobile networks and broadband communications
< What the rollout of 5G will mean for satellite communications in telecoms infrastructure on the move for the maritime, the automotive, and
aviation sectors.

TowerXchange: Intelsat has a great offering to TowerXchange: How do you see the need for
tower owners - can you give us some examples of densification and the increased focus on small
how Intelsat is working in the field? Do you have cells affecting how the European market
any case studies? develops?

Joost Hageman, Senior Principal Marketing Intelsat provides over 80 mobile Joost Hageman, Senior Principal Marketing Manager,
Manager, Intelsat: Intelsat provides over 80 mobile
operators and operator groups with satellite-based
backhaul services. This includes the top 10 mobile
groups in Africa, representing 70% of the regions 1
operators and operator groups with
satellite-based backhaul services
Intelsat: Densification will radically change the
operating model with the massive proliferation of
small cells.
billion active SIM cards. We have been looking into this and it will be
interesting to see how this develops, especially
The projects cover all the scenarios including independent towercos all operating in the when data intensive applications like video on
quick deploy rural solutions, upgrades from 2G market, how do you find these different market social media are used on a significant scale. Our
to 3G/4G LTE, and better, shared backhaul, usage segments respond to your solutions? experience is that in metro-areas connectivity is
based billing, disaster recovery and addressing new usually provided via terrestrial means, but we
market segments with deployments in developing Joost Hageman, Senior Principal Marketing can imagine supporting large scale events like
and developed regions. Deployments range from Manager, Intelsat: The European market is diverse, Glastonbury Festival in the UK or something like
basic voice in the Democratic Republic of Congo to highly sophisticated and competitive. Lowlands in The Netherlands, because supporting
providing 4G/LTE in Japan, the USA, and throughout this type of events are typically close to our
the EMEA region. There is also demand for quick deployment competence.
solutions outside of metropolitan areas that
Connectivity delivered via satellite is per enable MNOs and infrastructure partners to cater TowerXchange: Given your global reach, can you
definition flexible and can be applied to meet for a rapid rise in mobile data demand. In price- share with us your views on how the European
the USO requirements of the mobile spectrum sensitive markets we have deployed carrier grade market differs from the rest of the world?
license holders. Satellite also scales well enabling solutions to help operators meet their USO demands
management of traffic growth, for example for and we also work on infill solutions. About 30 Joost Hageman, Senior Principal Marketing
video delivery via mobile networks, and to manage percent of Europes estimated 600,000 cell sites are Manager, Intelsat: Europe is a highly diverse market,
large shifts in network traffic; this can be effectively currently managed by tower companies, and this an environment in which our larger customers
managed as needed without over-investing in your is expected to grow further. Within this context we already have a lot of experience. Europe is arguably
network. are convinced we can provide towercos and their a more competitive environment for MNO brands
customers with an extra highly efficient way to than the USA.
TowerXchange: Tell us about how you view expand mobile data coverage. HTS allows for cost-
the European market; with towers owned by effective enhancement of the data connectivity with This requires them to differentiate, and one of the
MNOs, MNO-captive towercos, JV infracos and a carrier grade quality of service. ways to achieve that is by capturing and retaining
customers that require connectivity anywhere. The
biggest difference with Africa is the degree in which
consumers from developed markets have been able
to embrace mobile data connectivity. With a median
penetration for basic mobile voice at 82% most of
Africas growth in the years to come will be in a shift
from basic mobile voice to mobile data, while Europe
will see more expansion with upgrades to 4G and
better connectivity.
TowerXchange: Please share with us Intelsats

vision for the future of the European market and
how you fit into it.
Joost Hageman, Senior Principal Marketing

Manager, Intelsat: We view satellite connectivity as
complementary to terrestrial network connectivity.
Satellite allows you to get into the periphery
and swiftly cater for any seasonal or daily shifts
in network traffic. This applies to the current
generations of mobile networks and for any future
network requirements such as 5G sites in ultra-
high capacity network designs with traffic rates at
Visit the TowerXchange.com website
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cope with such a rapid rise in demand for data < Access to the Internet of People in the global tower < A comprehensive archive of TowerXchanges
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in telecom and broadcast infrastructure company or grouped by category (e.g. interviews or
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how to guides)
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< Independent analysis and commentaries on the
is something we are able to support with our High < The latest news and registration information about
prospects for tower transactions in selected countries
Throughput Satellites. We realise full well that our TowerXchanges Meetups.
solutions must be cost-effective for operators and < The latest industry emerging market tower industry
tower companies alike and are convinced that we
have a highly interesting proposition for network
engineers and integrators to play with
How MediPower makes TowerXchange: Please introduce MediPower to
our readers, and explain your offering in the
European market.
going off-grid in Europe easy Massimo Ombra, President, MediPower: In the

An innovative offering for remote and rural towers in Italy is growing across Europe European telecom industry scenario, MediPower
is a pathfinder company which has been able, for
While ESCOs are gaining traction in almost 14 years, to offer a different concept in the
supply of power to local MNOs. The new business
Africa, in Europe most towers are
model introduced by MediPower was based on the
in easy reach of reliable national
idea to replace, and effectively act as, the national
grids. However, for those towers
provider of a commercial grid, servicing those sites
which are off grid, either because of
which were still too remote to be touched by the
their remote location or temporary national electrification plan of the country, and those
nature, handing over responsibility locations where customers required temporary
for power to a third party is a very power for their equipment.
attractive proposition for European
tower owners, Massimo Ombra, So, with our wealth of experience in the generating
President of MediPower, talks us sets business, and being a genset manufacturer with
through the details. more than 80 years pedigree, Ausonias management
team decided to create its own Energy Service
Company (ESCo), named MediPower, with the aim of
Keywords: Albania, Ausonia,
taking responsibility for all the power-related aspects
ESCOs, Editorials, Energy,
for its customers, guaranteeing MNOs a stable and
Europe, Greece, Hybrid Power,
continuous energy supply to their sites, based on
Italy, MediPower, Off-Grid, Opex
a monthly payable service fee. To do that, Ausonia
Reduction, Renewables, SLA, Solar, and MediPower joined their strengths to design and
Unreliable Grid, Uptime, Wind produce a range of diesel generators which had to
Massimo Ombra, President, MediPower
have specific features in order to reach the lowest
TCO and to generate an attractive offer based on
Read this article to learn: OPEX. Since then, thousands of sites have been
< MediPowers offering in the European market powered by our gensets, which have been installed,
< How the ESCO model can be rolled out across Europe maintained (both in the preventive and corrective
< The different energy needs of towercos and MNOs sense), overhauled, refueled, remotely monitored
< How market consolidation and M&A will change energy needs and managed by MediPower NOC throughout the
Italian territory.
Today we serve all four Italian MNOs (Vodafone, TIM,
Wind and H3G), with a market share above 80% and
being sole supplier to three out of the four previously
mentioned MNOs. At the same time we are exploring
different opportunities in other European countries
where our OPEX business model seems to be
attractive to MNOs and towercos.
TowerXchange: What is MediPowers strategy to

expand its power lease-based business across
Europe?
Massimo Ombra, President, MediPower: After

several years of continuous successes, a few years
ago we reached the maximum market share we
could ever think to achieve in Italy, basically due to
two main reasons: the first one is that some MNOs
have got specific internal policies forcing them to
keep at least two suppliers for energy services; the
second one is that the number of off-grid sites in Italy and, once the opportunity is close to materialising, Massimo Ombra, President, MediPower: When it
could change only in terms of a few sites per year, we will soon launch the relevant new country-based comes to power, we see that Europe is different from
as the grid network is well distributed and it covers opcos. The implementation of our business model other parts of the world, and, within Europe itself,
almost the entire Italian territory. in a new country is quite easy and quick to achieve, every country has its own power requirements and
as the technological framework which is behind it territorial distribution of the energy needs.
Since we are ambitious and we strongly believe in is ready to be replicated and immediately deployed,
the benefits and advantages our services can provide so that we can start offering our energy services to In Italy, the energy we sell to our customers is
to our customers, we started looking over the Italian any new customer in Europe within a short period. mainly required on sites which are quite difficult
border, mainly at Greece, Spain, Albania and other The sooner we launch our new opco, the sooner our to reach, such as the Alps or remote areas, and on
countries where the commercial power network is customers start enjoying the benefits, in a win-win temporary sites which are still not reached by the
not as well distributed and reliable as it is in Italy. business cooperation. National Grid. In other countries, the main energy
As part of this process, we started discussions with need is concentrated on islands, forests, wild areas
different European MNOs and towercos, in order TowerXchange: Can you talk us through the or simply to give energy to small communities. All
to explore business opportunities in the region and energy needs of Italian towers? What are the this represents a very challenging scenario in which
verify if our OPEX-based approach could match their main drivers for your clients energy demands? to perform our business, as from a logistical point
energy requirements and cost savings targets. We How does this differ from other parts of the of view accessibility to the site is difficult and the
have deepened such discussions with some of them world? genset rotation on temporary sites, at least in Italy, is
close to two months. On sites which are unlikely to be with one MNO only (single tenant), the site power definitely going to happen, creating a new category
reached by a national electrification plan, the rotation consumption is today generally reduced compared of energy service and solutions vendors.
ratio is much higher, so we try, as much as we can, to to a few years ago, thanks to the new technologies
adopt green energy solutions, with the aim to strongly of the telecom equipment installed on site, and its TowerXchange: The Italian market is due to
reduce OPEX and bring down the logistical costs typically stable over the period. change again with the entry of Iliads Free Mobile,
relevant to site visits for maintenance and refueling. whats your take on how this will affect the status
But if we look at the towercos, which have an quo?
Within this scenario, MediPower is able to provide interest in entering into multi-tenancy agreements
high efficiency and green energy solutions, based and sharing their costs over more customers, the site Massimo Ombra, President, MediPower: It will
on the deployment of Ausonia products such as high power consumption is typically subject to variations definitely be interesting to see what will happen
efficiency DC gensets and hybrid power systems, over the period, as it depends on the total number upon the entry of Iliads Free Mobile into the
integrated with renewable energy sources such as of tenants in collocation. This forces them to look Italian market, once the green light is given by the
solar and/or wind. By doing this we can definitively for efficient, scalable and reliable energy solutions European Union to the joint venture between Wind
state that the significant advantage of having which can guarantee them the lowest TCO, in order and H3G. The low-cost tariffs which are going to be
MediPower as an energy partner is the fact that our to always optimise the energy production costs in offered by the French company will force all the rest
customers are no longer dependent on CAPEX for terms of $/kWh. of the mobile operators to react fast, creating a more
their power needs, as they can enjoy of a pay per competitive market and more attractive offers to the
use energy service, totally complementary to the We have also to highlight that there is a clear subscribers.
electrification process of their network. tendency for both MNOs and towercos to
subcontract the power supply and all relevant With reference to our energy service business
TowerXchange: In a market where there is a large issues, in order to stay focused on their natural covering the entire national territory, we see this
amount of towerco activity, what differences do business and following development. This is new entry as an opportunity to extend our offering
you see between how towercos and MNOs respond something already happening in Africa and other to Free Mobile, and its worth bearing in mind that
to energy needs? regions, but the process is clearly slowed down by that some of their future sites are already currently
the hesitations which arise during the evaluation of powered by our fleet of gensets, because of the
Massimo Ombra, President, MediPower: Generally the potential energy partner(s) to be selected, which energy supply agreements we signed with both
speaking, both MNOs and towercos are moving from must be financially and operationally reliable, as Wind and H3G for their off-grid and temporary
a CAPEX based selection towards a TCO analysis of the powering of the network will be based on their sites. Additionally, among their priorities, it seems
the energy solutions, as their attention to OPEX is service performance. Of course, the introduction of that Free Mobile will have to build a big portion
very important and the control over these variable Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and strict ratios of its network infrastructure for mobile base
costs is a key tool in monitoring their own operational for power availability can help them to identify stations, which will be additional to those inherited
performance. which company can really perform the services from Wind and H3G, and we are ready to offer
successfully, especially in the short term, during the the extension of our energy services even to any
Additionally, the energy demand is generally variable, ramp-up period. Honestly, we think this process will additional site where they would decide to enjoy of
as it mostly depends on the strategies they adopt in still take several years to be widely used among the the advantages and benefits MediPower can offer to
their different markets. In fact, if we consider sites telecom industry players, but its something that is them with for many years
NorthStar: more than just
TowerXchange: Please introduce NorthStar
to our readers - what role do you play in the
a battery company
telecoms infrastructure ecosystem?
Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC,

Market leaders in premium lead acid batteries committed to understanding NorthStar Battery: Since 2000 NorthStars telecom
and resolving their customers energy storage problems batteries and site solutions have been delivered
in more than 150 countries. NorthStar helps its
NorthStar is more than just a battery company. Theyve customers globally to extend battery life and save
made a commitment to really supporting their customers. A energy by providing High Performance AGM
commitment to help customers select the right batteries. A Batteries specially designed for different grids and
commitment to identify and resolve power system problems, telecom applications I believe today NorthStar
even if they arent caused by batteries. And a commitment Batteries makes the best AGM batteries in the
to manufacture, and dispose of, lead-acid batteries in an industry.
environmentally aware manner. Of course, NorthStar also
manufactures premium lead acid batteries which they say
But NorthStar Battery is more than just a battery
represent the best compromise between capex and opex,
company. We also have a unique expertise in power
which is why they are one of the market leaders in energy
systems for emerging markets which is key to
storage for emerging market cell sites.
optimise battery life and energy saving.
Keywords: Whos Who, How to Guide, Meetup Preview,

Energy, Installation, Opex Reduction, Batteries, Fuel TowerXchange: We usually ask how many cell
Security, Air Conditioning, Off-Grid, Unreliable Grid, ROI, sites in Africa, LatAm and Asia the interviewees
Hybrid Power, DG Runtime, Dimensioning, Procurement, solutions are installed - I guess that may be
Warehousing, Shelters, Rectifiers, Africa, Asia, Pakistan, difficult to specify given the scale of NorthStars
NorthStar Battery NorthStar Battery business! However, can you give us a sense of
the size of your telecoms business in those three
regions.
< Why premium lead-acid batteries remain the best compromise between capex and opex
< How to choose the right battery for the grid profile and application NorthStar Battery: Tens of thousands sites in MEA
< How to overcome common problems in the installation and setting of batteries are equipped with NorthStar products. In Pakistan
< How to cool batteries with just 40W, even at 30-40C ambient alone, Northstar has equipped over 5,000 sites
< How to protect batteries from theft and vandalism with a pure fuel saving application delivering
outstanding results. Many thousands of hybrid
sites in Africa have been equipped with NorthStar depending on the grid profile and energy situation. understanding of why batteries are failing. While
technology since 2000. Theres a huge difference between the battery you the right choice of battery is crucial, its as much
should deploy on a stable grid in USA, compared about the electrochemistry as it is the choice
TowerXchange: Why are lead acid batteries with the unpredictability of the grid in Pakistan, of supplier so simply switching to a different
standing up to the challenge of alternate energy and pure off grid applications in Myanmar for supplier wont fix the problem. Energy storage
storage chemistries in a telecom context? example. solutions need to be redesigned to provide reliable,
sustainable power to cell sites in emerging markets,
Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC, NorthStar differentiates ourselves by offering providing faster recharge, high cyclic, high
NorthStar Battery: Frank Fleming, our renowned different chemistry depending on the application temperature, high efficiency operation.
CTO, has a strong belief that lead acid can remain and grid profile. Whereas with other vendors the
the technology of choice for telecom energy storage battery is a standard, commoditized component, You need to deploy the right power system, on the
for the next 50 years, as long as we push the limits forcing site designers to solve their problems right settings and ensure its installed properly. This
of the design. through the modification of other power systems, is why we are lauching the NorthStar Academy to
NorthStar have been able to customise the design help to extend battery life by two to three times and
We also want to push back against the bad of our batteries for different grid availability and save energy.
environmental image of lead acid batteries, which telecom applications.
is why we invested massively in environmental While some battery vendors may prefer their
controls when we built our new factory. Many For example, one of the most unstable grids we batteries die sooner to accelerate replacement
of our key customers select NorthStar as their have experienced was in Bangladesh. No matter cycles and sales volumes, NorthStar want to make
preferred / strategic supplier partly because of our what power system we used, there were so many sure our batteries last a long time and deliver the
strong environmental control. Corporate Social repeated power outages that it seemed we were opex savings targeted. Our success comes from
Responsibility policies make environmental control never able to fully recharge our batteries. That our people in the field, people with a background
a key target for companies like Ericsson, with whom presents a problem for traditional lead acid energy from the power industry, who can address power
weve been a key strategic partner since 2002. Were storage technology, but we were able to modify our system problems holistically and who can help our
also strategic suppliers to NSN, Huawei and ZTE. electro chemistry to be fully partial state of charge customers fix those problems. If its not a battery
(PSOC) compatible. problem, we dont just say talk to the power system
TowerXchange: How much tailoring to the vendor, we help the customer to change controller
specific requirements of individual sites can TowerXchange: Why is the replacement cycle so settings, cabling et cetera training their people to
really be achieved through the selection of much shorter for batteries on developing market avoid repeating mistakes.
batteries? cell sites, and what can be done to deliver
reliable, sustainable power? TowerXchange: I understand NorthStar initially,
Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC, and to a certain extent still do, sell a significant
NorthStar Battery: One battery cannot fit all Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC, proportion of batteries via OEMs how does the
applications. You need different chemistry NorthStar Battery: We think there is too little entry of the independent towercos affect the
our products are available as close as possible to
100 100
market.
90 90
TowerXchange: What is the performance, and

80 80
cost, difference when using premium lead acid
70 70 batteries versus lower cost alternatives at cell
sites in harsh conditions?
60 60
50 50 Capex Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC,

Opex NorthStar Battery: A premium AGM (thin plate
40 40
technology) would normally cost 30% more than
30 30 a Standard AGM battery with three to four times
greater storage life and up to five times longer
20 20
operating life in real harsh conditions (typically 2.5
10 10 X the life).
0 0
Genset Only Genset + Power +
Controler + OPZV
Genset + NorthStar
Hybrid Power
Genset + Power +
controller + Solar or
Genset Power
&controller + Solar &
Pure Renewable Energy
Mix
A lot of our customers are migrating from dual
Batteries Wind Wind DG to DG plus battery hybrids to cut DG runtime
Source: NorthStar Battery
by 50% or more. If you want to optimise energy
criteria against which energy storage solutions solution selection is driven by short term capex efficiency programmes, you have to think about
are acquired? savings, resulting in a temporary improvement in total efficiency; about DG efficiency, the efficiency
Delivering reliable and sustainable power to the world
the P&L. However, making the wrong decisions of rectifiers, and the efficiency of batteries. A
Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC, in the selection of energy storage is does not yield standard battery can suffer two to three times
NorthStar Battery: We have always had a strong performance improvements that are sustainable in more loss than a premium battery, which can
strategic relationship with OEMs and we will the medium and long term, particularly at unstable make a huge difference for some applications.
always will. But we also realised we need to and off grid sites. A premium, fast charge battery can take a lot of
accelerate the battery technology and solutions energy to recharge the battery in short time, which
awareness at the end customer level such as with There are only three or four factories worldwide enables the customer to run the DG faster and more
towercos as they are more and more driving the that can manufacture premium AGM batteries. But efficiently, for a shorter time.
battery selection process. the good thing about premium AGM is that they
have a two year shelf life thus we can then easily For example, when we rolled out NorthStar Blue
Our technology has been approved already by maintain inventories in hubs all around the world Technology in Pakistan, we found that most of the
two major emerging market towercos this year. and provide a short lead time to our customers; operators were buying low cost batteries because
We still see a few examples where energy storage we adapt to the logistical challenges to ensure of their focus on capex. When they saw that at off
grid sites we were cutting DG runtime by up to 85%, Why are telecom batteries failing so early?
we helped them realise that it doesnt even matter
if you replace in your batteries every two to three
5%
years if you payback the investment in three to four
months. 10%
NorthStar Blue Technology is ideal for unstable 35% Wrong setting or installation
and off grid sites; its a fast charge, high
efficiency battery with Partial State of Charge Incorrect battery selection
(PSOC) compatibility. If used in a hybrid genset 20% Temperature
combination, it offers the best capex and opex
Theft and vandalism
compromise. Other technology such as sodium and
lithium batteries are two to three times the price Others
and are not so easy to implement in large scale
projects.
30%
TowerXchange: Why are telecom batteries
Source: NorthStar Battery
failing so early? And what are the key steps
towercos and MNOs can take to extend battery recharge the batteries. Our recommendation is that 30-50%. But air conditioning just to cool energy
life? customers need to use different chemistries for storage elements costs a lot of money. A few years
different locations. ago we partnered with one of the most famous
Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC, fridge manufacturers to leverage proven consumer
NorthStar Battery: We need to increase customer 2 Solve installation and setting issues: everything product technology into the telecom fields. We took
awareness of the root cause of batteries problems. from cabling the battery properly to controller the high efficiency, high reliability DC compressor
What NorthStar have done, and what all the settings (charging voltage, boost timing et cetera); cooling technology, added a unique cabinet
battery manufacturers should have done, is make low voltage disconnect; temperature sensor structure and made the worlds most efficient
an assessment on over 60 countries where our configuration and cooling systems. Too many site telecom battery cooler called SiteStar. We can
batteries had been installed, to find out what were installers dont even know how many rectifiers now cool batteries with just 40W even at 30-40C
the key challenges were with using batteries, and to they need to recharge the batteries spending an ambient. Over 30,000 sites have been equipped
and try to find a solution for each: extra US$200 on a rectifier can save a US$5,000 with our SiteStar technology to date with very
battery bank. positive feedback from the field.
1 Make sure to select the right battery based on
grid and application including sizing/dimensioning; 3 Temperature: a 10C change in temperature 4 Protect batteries from theft and vandalism: One
in too many cases there is not enough power to can reduce battery performance by as much as approach were trying is to protect batteries in a
safe-like structure. Weve co-operated with a safe NorthStar Academy on the basic principles we is a tangible, core value for NorthStar Batteries.
manufacturer to come up with a cabinet which can put all the installers in one room, identify In the past few years weve assessed the typical
used to be a safe box; made of robust, very thick common problems and misconceptions, and make problems faced by our customers, and come up
metal. Another area were starting to explore is corrective actions. with solutions for what can we do to extend battery
advanced locking systems. life and save energy.
TowerXchange: How do NorthStar ensure
In some countries theft is related to the parallel you remain sensitive to environmental We seek to understand our customers problems.
market; at one point batteries were even being considerations from manufacture to disposal? Well audit your site for you and we wont leave
resold to the operators from which they were without giving you an analysis of the problem
stolen! This was resolved with a relatively easy to Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC, and corrective actions. You wont get an its not
fix an engraving that cannot be removed. In other NorthStar Battery: NorthStar has invested heavily a battery problem talk to power system vendor
cases the parallel market is home usage, but I feel in building the most environmentally advanced attitude with NorthStar we have a strong
thats minimal. battery plant in the world. But our environmental competence on the whole power solution, not just
policies actually start from the design of the the batteries.
No single approach to combating theft can be product; making sure the battery is designed to
successful everywhere as there are different last longer and also not to deteriorate beyond the Weve changed the focus of our business to help
causes of theft, from theft by large organisations end of its life. We are also developing an advanced our customers understand how to select the
to pilferage within the fuel supply chain. solution to operate batteries with the minimum right batteries. One best electro-chemistry and
Ultimately combating theft requires working energy consumption our SiteStar battery cooler battery technology isnt right for all grid profiles
with the operators and towercos to develop an designed in Sweden is still the most energy and applications. For example, low technology
understanding of the nature of their theft problem efficient Battery cooler in the industry. batteries could be good enough for some developed
and what budget they can afford to resolve it. Theft market applications. But battery performance is
is a problem, and we want to address it. TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how you more problematic in developing markets, so weve
would differentiate NorthStars batteries from developed energy storage solutions for unreliable
NorthStar can help MNOs and towercos overcome other energy storage solutions for remote cell and off grid applications which we think represent
all four of these challenges. Im particularly sites. the best compromise between capex and opex.
concerned when people talk about minimising
the competence required of people in the field. Thierry Tardivent, Head of MEA and APAC, Lastly we are developing solutions which have a
While the solution needs to be as simple as possible NorthStar Battery: Most battery companies are very quick payback. Payback after five to ten years
to be installed and operated, the competence of focusing only on selling their own components. wont work in telecom industry everything needs
the average field engineer is not necessarily the But NorthStar are more than just a battery to pay for itself in less than two years. NorthStar
same in Southern Asia and Africa as it might be company. We take a different approach we are focused on developing the best opex solutions,
in Europe. We see a lot of mistakes in installation, really want to help our customers (as well as with affordable capex and quick payback making
and were happy to the deliver first training at the help ourselves). How we support our customers our energy storage solutions a no brainer!
Accruents SaaS site
TowerXchange: Please introduce your company
where do you fit in the telecoms infrastructure
ecosystem?
management solution delivers Bill Glass, General Manager of Telecom, Accruent:
for towercos We have developed an enterprise-class Software

as a Service (SaaS) product for tower companies
which encompasses the full site life cycle from site
Siterra helps optimise key tower management tasks, and the service is
construction to co-location and the decommissioning
constantly evolving to meet client needs of towers. Our software facilitates efficient
operations and drives strong revenue growth for
Accruents Siterra provides a platform much like a
tower operators and managed service providers.
dedicated ERP for towercos and MNOs they are experts
in helping clients clean up and organise their data,
Think of us as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
making the solution ideal as companies scale their
provider for tower companies and MNOs. We have
operations across multiple regions and countries. In the
the capacity to manage the entire ecosystem that
latest of a series of interviews exploring the capabilities
surrounds tower infrastructure.
of Siterra, TowerXchange focuses on the merits of
using a native SaaS platform, and on data accuracy and
Co-location is one area we have a special focus on;
standardisation, critical to accelerating time to market
most tower companies want to increase their co-
for tenants, and critical to driving tenancy ratio and
tenancy ratio. What makes our company unique
Bill Glass, General Manager of Telecom, Accruent valuation growth for the towerco or MNO.
is that it has the capacity to manage the entire
process from marketing through to fulfilment and
Keywords: Accruent, Americas, Asset Lifecycle Platform, Asset Register, Capacity Enhancements, operational management.
Central America, Europe, Infrastructure Lifecycle Management, Infrastructure Sharing, Job Ticketing,
KPIs, Monitoring & Management, Multi-country Partner, NOC, O&M, Operational Excellence, RMS, Site TowerXchange: The first question our readers
Level Profitability, Site Management System, Siterra, South America, Transfer Assets, Whos Who will want to know is how proven is your solution
in the field? Can you please tell us about the
performance of your solution the field who is
Read this article to learn: using it and what results have been achieved?
< Accruents position in the telecom ecosystem and global footprint
< How Siterra helps manage the full tower site life cycle Bill Glass, General Manager of Telecom, Accruent:
< How Siterra enables working with subcontractors Our solution has strong credibility in the market.
< The benefits of a SaaS site management platform Thirteen of the top 121 tower companies listed
by TowerXchange are already current Accruent

cleans up and standardises data. It puts data into visibility is limited to only the assets, tasks, and sites
a much more efficient site-centric format, which that are necessary for their work.
makes it easier for MNOs and tower companies to
buy, integrate and market their assets. Whats more, TowerXchange: How can your SaaS platform be
by handling data in a digestible manner, tower configured to adapt to different towercos unique
by handling data in a digestible companies and MNOs can make towers available on business processes and workflows?
manner, tower companies the market faster and more cost efficiently, thereby
increasing tenancy ratios. Bill Glass, General Manager of Telecom, Accruent:
and MNOs can make towers
available on the market faster
and more cost efficiently, thereby
increasing tenancy ratios
TowerXchange: How does your solution help
manage different stakeholders within the tower
supply chain from tenants to subcontractors?
We are constantly developing and upgrading our
platform to suit the needs of tower companies. As
things currently stand, Siterra provides for more
than 90% of tower companies needs straight
out of the box. The remaining 10% can be easily
Bill Glass, General Manager of Telecom, Accruent: configured on the platform so customers can adapt it
The solution can help tower companies handle leads to meet their specific requirements. We come to the
customers. At present, we operate in twelve and administration models. In addition, the asset engagement with our customer with best practices
countries across five continents and have a register and customer portal integration that sits at available to immediately drive efficiency based on
particularly strong focus for 2016 on Europe and the heart of Siterras colocation solution can be used our knowledge of the industry.
Central and Latin America. We are constantly to provide up-to-date information on colocation. For
adding new portfolios for our current customers and example, a tower company may wish to inform an Weve also developed many feature requests in
carrying out implementations in multiple countries. MNO of open towers that are available for rent. They partnership with our clients. A client will typically
will be able to do this through our portal. come to us with a request for a particular feature.
At first, many of our clients purchase our solution to Once we have developed that feature we will
use it in a particular territory. However, once they Our solution can also be used to support contract incorporate it into later versions of our platform so
have the solution installed, they realise that they and service provider management. In fact, Siterra that other customers can take advantage of it.
can achieve operational efficiencies by rolling it out uses a permissions-based model. If an operator
across all of their countries and portfolios, and we or tower company wants to give a contractor or Thanks to our focus on long term partnerships and
can support them in this endeavour. If a company service provider access to the system it can do so successful product co-development, weve been
wants to roll out our solution to multiple countries, very easily. The contractor or service provider can able to create a stable platform for tower portfolios.
we can help them standardise processes including then carry out a task and post a photo to provide However, we notice that many companies in the
reporting, colocation, license management, project proof that the project has been completed. Siterra market continue to invest in custom software. We
management, vendor management, and inspection offers sophisticated tools for project managers to feel that this is a failed strategy because, over the
management. efficiently review work submitted for accuracy long term, companies end up wasting IT resources
and quality. Whats more, the system has built in and limiting the potential to make long term
One of the selling points of our solution is that it security features so that each contractors access and efficiency gains.

Unlike many other solutions on the market, our SaaS
application was not built from scratch based on an
on-premises application all of our incremental
investments have been to enhance its functionality.
Total costs for the customer can escalate quickly if
With some solutions on the market, users tend to become beholden to
professional service teams after deployment. Thats not the case with Siterra.
Once a customer has bought the solution and implemented it, theyre up
and running. They dont need to constantly check in with our professional
services department
a solution needs to be re-built over time or requires
extensive support. Thats why it makes much more
sense to purchase a proven SaaS solution like Siterra.
With some solutions on the market, users tend to

become beholden to professional service teams after
deployment. Thats not the case with Siterra. Once a
customer has bought the solution and implemented
TowerXchange: How can a robust approach to buyer to use manpower to inspect four thousand it, theyre up and running. They dont need to
asset registers and asset lifecycle management towers when purchasing a portfolio. By using constantly check in with our professional services
improve the valuation of tower assets? Siterra, buyers and sellers can perform clean department. Of course, our professional services and
searches without digging through files and records customer teams are always available if needed, but
Bill Glass, General Manager of Telecom, Accruent: to get access to the right information. We find that we are strongly of the opinion that our customers
The main benefit comes in being able to understand most buyers and sellers prefer to use Siterra to should not be dependent on us for their daily
the condition of the assets and the inventory carry out the portfolio valuation process at the end business needs.
associated to those assets. Being able to keep track of the day our system reduces acquisition risk for
of inventory is a benefit, particularly for large, acquirers and improves return on investment for Theres also a huge amount of functionality built into
international tower companies. Smaller companies, sellers. Siterra that allows customer system administrators
on the other hand, are looking to maximise their to modify workflows, create new reports and
tower valuation for strategic buyers. Thats exactly TowerXchange: Please sum up how you manipulate site data on a large scale within the
where the site-centric focus of our software comes would differentiate your solution from your administration console. Users dont need to receive
into play. competitors? any code or help from Accruent to make these
changes.
Our platform can provide complete access to Bill Glass, General Manager of Telecom, Accruent:
maintenance records, site information and pictures Our annual product investment is larger than In summary, our market share, our investment, and
of site equipment. This makes it extremely useful for most of our competitors revenues that in itself our product functionality significantly outweigh
strategic buyers and companies that are seeking to differentiates us from our competitors. our competitors products, and over the last fifteen
sell their assets. years, we have successfully brought the best of the
On top of this, Siterra is a SaaS platform, so we have best when it comes to industry best practices and
For example, it isnt really feasible for a strategic benefited from the shift towards cloud applications. knowledge
Tarantula platform designed TowerXchange: Please introduce yourself and
Tarantula for readers less familiar with your
company.
to facilitate co-location in Europe Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula: I
Enabling tenants and tower companies to collaborate and realise significant was developing OSS tools for Telefnica in the UK
time savings before going on to found Tarantula in early 2000.
Tower companies and their tenants have historically struggled The company formally launched in early 2001
to get visibility into the end to end co-location process. They as an industry-wide site sharing co-location
have not been able to identify hold-ups and have often found it platform in the UK. Our software has helped
difficult to manage documents waiting for approval. Tarantula manage more than 18,000 co-locations on this
has a proven, trusted and highly configurable software platform platform in the UK and hundreds of thousands of
(Red Cube) which leverages the latest technology to significantly co-location transactions across Europe, Asia and
improve the efficiency of co-location operations. In this Africa. This equates to millions of dollars of site
interview, Ravi Kuppan, Founder of Tarantula, explains how rent being collected each month, all enabled by
Tarantula is shaking up the world of site management. our platform. Our co-location module provides
centralised management of co-location on the web,
Keywords: Asset Lifecycle Platform, Asset Register, Capex, Co- which in turn enables the customer and tower
locations, Due Diligence, Infrastructure Sharing, Installation, owner to collaborate and yield time savings for all
Investment, Job Ticketing, KPIs, Leasing & Permitting, Masts parties. Tarantula provides transparency for end
& Towers, MNOs, Monitoring & Management, Novation of to end co-location users can identify hold-ups,
leases, O&M, Operational Excellence, Operator-Led JV, Opex
manage documents awaiting approval, improve
Reduction, Procurement, QoS, RedCube, Risk, RMS, Sale
performance against SLAs, and reduce disputes.
& Leaseback, Site Management System, SLAs, Tarantula,
Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula Towercos, Transfer Assets, Uptime
So what makes us stand out as a company? Our
team has in-depth knowledge of working with and
experience in operating tower companies. This
alignment means we understand their software
< How Tarantulas platform helps towercos and their tenants to collaborate and reduce costs
needs inside out. Based on this, we have taken
< How independent towercos and MNO JV infracos are taking differing approaches to portfolio
30 real-world, best practice towerco processes
management and brought these to life through persona-based
< The 30 Tarantula tower best practice processes workflows, linking together towerco data such as
< Tarantulas experience working in Western and Eastern Europe assets and leases into one central business model.
Moreover, we have linked this integrated data with
powered our product philosophy and links the Red The industry will need to adapt faster as time
Cube platform to the creation of business value. to market considerations become increasingly
important factors for start-up tower companies
TowerXchange: What has been Tarantulas and newly acquired portfolios. Out of the box
experience of working with European towercos, software will play a critical part in developing best
infracos and MNOs? practice processes for these businesses so they
dont need to re-invent the wheel.
Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula: We
have been working with UK opcos since early 2001. TowerXchange: How does the unique structure
Over the last 15 years we have also worked with of the European tower industry - consisting of
a variety of tier one MNOs and tower operators many operator-captive and MNO JV infracos
across Western and Eastern Europe. as well as independent towercos - affect their
respective appetite and need for portfolio
Weve learnt that Western and Eastern European management information?
MNOs and service providers operate slightly

differently. For example, in Russia, planning
processes are slightly different than in the UK
things tend to get done much faster in Russia.
TowerXchange: How do you see the evolution of

the European Tower industry in the past year?
The industry will need to
Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula: It adapt faster as time to market
appears that the time is ripe for European tower considerations become
divestment. A lot has been spent on licenses.
master lease agreements to offer a built-in pricing There are a number of planned divestments across increasingly important factors
and billing platform. This is available straight out
of the box, allowing companies to quickly integrate
and deploy a towerco business model and end to
end site management in a single software platform.
The software is being used in 20 different countries
around the world which gives us a wide breadth of
Spain, Russia, and Italy. On top of this, weve also
noticed an increasing number of interested buyers
- strategic as well as financial getting engaged in
European tower transactions.
All of these players have one overriding concern

for start-up tower companies
and newly acquired portfolios
industry experience. how to absorb or transfer these assets quickly and
how to monetise assets in a sustainable manner.
It is these inherent values and benefits that have Thats why out of the box software is so critical.
Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula: is homogeneous, when it clearly is not. Over the Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula:
Id like to answer this question in two parts. The last 15 years weve learnt a lot about the nuances First of all, tower companies need to understand
first thing that needs to be borne in mind is that in our industry. We understand the differences what is on their sites in terms of assets. Secondly,
there are two very different drivers affecting the between different geographies and business they have to understand how these assets link back
market. Fortunately, we have experience in both models. So we know a lot about the different ways to commercial site licenses.
segments. in which companies view their portfolios. This
is why we have built a software platform that is This allows tower companies to enjoy cost
The Indian market is a good example. In India, flexible and configurable and takes into account optimisation when they service their sites, and this
you have Indus, which is an operator-led joint the different business drivers for each type of represents a substantial proportion of opex.
venture tower company. You also have traditional tower company.
tower companies like American Tower. Both Understanding these two questions is not an
of these companies have quite different goals TowerXchange: We hear increasing appetite overnight process. The faster a new tower
and objectives. One goal is to serve their MNO for the European tower industry to engage company can invest in a proven software platform
parents and ultimately deliver efficient service with active as well as passive infrastructure, such as Tarantula, the quicker they can enhance
provision. In this regard, automated portfolio and broadcast as well as tower assets - how their asset valuation and accelerate the whole
management tool-sets are critical for managing can management information support this process of integrating assets.
and provisioning the process for installing and extension of the business model?
upgrading equipment. MNOs are less interested We have seen several examples of this such as the
in how the lease agreement links back to the Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula: recent American Tower-Viom transaction; Helios
original customer order and whether it was Extension of the business model for tower Towers Africa buying assets from Bharti Airtel;
installed at the correct height. Joint venture companies will link back to processes being and edotco buying Digicel MTC in Myanmar. A
infrastructure companies are often more extended and adapted. This will ultimately drive solid platform provides confidence to the investors
interested in being efficient service partners than the management information. Capturing data and when conducting any due diligence and this makes
in monetising the rental of the tower. So portfolio providing a flexible and configurable process layer integration of the towers easier once purchased.
management is more asset and SLA centric. that is scalable will allow the tower industry to Tarantula has developed an integrated tower
quickly seize new opportunities. purchase module to ensure customers benefit from
For independent tower companies, the business a step by step process to ensure any new assets
is all about real estate. Managing the space TowerXchange: New tower businesses are can be monetised quickly.
on towers is central for these companies being created, carved out or acquired on an
profitability. As a consequence, a portfolio increasingly regular basis in Europe - where Lastly, it should be mentioned that adopting the 30
management platform needs to provide a level should such entities start when it comes Tarantula tower best practice processes can enable
of data granularity that can efficiently link leases to improving asset register accuracy and a new tower company to rollout the platform
with assets and ensure revenue is not lost. commercialising tower management which faster across its ecosystem of operations to create a
might have previously been managed purely on single version of the truth. Managing the business
A lot of people seem to think the tower industry a cost charge-back basis? through multiple Excel sheets does not inspire

of data quality, but face numerous challenges
with data integrity. Our experience is that the
challenge of creating and managing a new tower
company via a single software platform is often
10% underestimated. Managing expectations when all
users have one platform and they have their own
Tower companies are waking up to the importance of data quality, Excel or Access database is not a trivial matter.
but face numerous challenges with data integrity. Our experience
is that the challenge of creating and managing a new tower
company via a single software platform20% is often underestimated
TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how you
would differentiate Tarantulas solution from
competitive site management platforms.
Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula:

Tarantula brings 15 years of experience in this
sector globally with its software platform. We
recognise that markets are different, the US is
the same level of confidence with investors and initial co-location request through the installation not Europe or Asia, while other solutions are still
potential transaction penalty warranties can be all need to be covered and managed. A tower asset learning the market differences. Having global
invoked later if substantial data mis-matches are is constantly changing and the key is ultimately to experience with roots in co-location from early
found. derive a full history of all changes on the tower and 2000, gives us a depth of knowledge no other
track how they are linked back to the commercial competitor has when it comes to implementation.
TowerXchange: How would you characterise lease arrangements.
the current state of portfolio management With an installed base in 20 countries, we are
information in European telecoms - are built- Some companies think they can build it always well aware of the industrys needs and
for-purpose platforms like Tarantulas widely themselves, using Excel or other building blocks. this fuels our ongoing roadmap enhancements,
used, or is your main competition still Excel Building your own tool really makes little sense providing our customers with the latest knowledge
spreadsheets? when standard products like Tarantula are incorporated within the product.
available with millions of dollars of ongoing
Ravi Kuppan, Founder and Director, Tarantula: product investment that reflect improved business Our 30 real-world tested, best practice towerco
Portfolio management only covers one part of the practices across the industry. Also, it dilutes the processes integrate all data including assets, leases,
challenge assets are typically understood in a core lease management focus of towercos by billing information, and financials, into one central
narrow sense. For example, many telcos see it as needing to build IT teams and manage non-core business model. This allows companies to quickly
the ground and tenant lease. We look at portfolio IT projects. integrate and deploy a towerco business model
management in a much broader, holistic sense. as a single source of truth delivered as a software
For example - the end to end process from the Tower companies are waking up to the importance service
How to structure MLAs and SLAs TowerXchange: Please can you introduce Vinson
& Elkins expertise in the tower industry. What
have you advised on and with what types of
to effectively avoid future disputes clients have you worked with?
Expert advice from leading law firm in the tower sector, Vinson & Elkins Rob Patterson, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: Vinson
& Elkins has extensive experience in the tower
sector, advising clients across the globe on both
Vinson & Elkins are one of the most
transactional and dispute work.
experienced law firms in the tower
industry, having advised clients on some Our clients include public and private companies
of the most complex cases in more than (from startups to well-established businesses),
twelve African countries and a number mobile network operators, tower companies and
of jurisdictions in the Middle East and investors. We help them with tower acquisitions,
Southeast Asia. TowerXchange speak co-location, master lease, build-to-suit, management
to Vinson & Elkins team to obtain their services and marketing arrangements and all
aspects of their businesses all over the world.
expert advice on structuring transactions
and designing MLAs and SLAs that avoid
Ahmed el-Gaili, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: The
Rob Patterson, Partner, Vinson & Elkins, Ahmed el-Gaili, Partner, Vinson & the creation of frictions and disputes over matters we advise on include acquisitions and
Elkins, and Natalie Lamb, Senior Associate, Vinson & Elkins
the course of the long-term agreement. disposals of tower portfolios (often by way of sale
and leaseback transaction), equity investments
Keywords: Active Infrasharing, Africa, Africa & ME, Anchor Tenant, Co-locations, Deal Structure, Energy, into tower businesses, debt financings, set up and
day-to-day running of commercial and operational
Infrastructure Sharing, Lawyers & Advisors, Lease Rates, Leasing & Permitting, Middle East, MLA,
contracts and the resolution of disputes. We have
MNOs, Novation of Leases, Regulation, Risk, Sale & Leaseback, SLA, Towercos, Valuation, Vinson &
advised on some of the most complex and high
Elkins, Whos Who
value tower-related transactions and cases in
high growth markets to date including in more
than twelve African countries and a number of
Read this article to learn: jurisdictions in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
< Vinson & Elkins experience advising clients in the tower industry
< Key considerations in designing an MLA to avoid disputes down the line Natalie Lamb, Senior Associate, Vinson & Elkins: We
< How to treat RAN sharing in an MLA to protect both parties understand the regulatory, political and commercial
< Strategies for towercos to mitigate the risk posed by tenants with lower credit ratings issues that arise and the legal issues facing our
< Trends in SLAs and how to design fair agreements that improve site operations and uptime international clients doing business in this sector
and in these regions.

TowerXchange: Weve have seen examples terminated. The operator will therefore want to
of tower transactions where an operator has ensure at the outset that the towerco commits to full
been unhappy with the long term contract compliance with ground leases, prompt rectification
that has been put in place following a deal. of any breaches and timely renewals of expiring
When designing a Master Lease Agreement ground lease agreements. If it is too easy for a
(MLA), what terms do both parties need to be towerco to terminate a ground lease and substitute
particularly careful of that can have a negative the tower for another location, the operator will not The days when a towerco would
impact on the attractiveness of a contract in the have adequately protected its most valuable asset.
long run? Conversely, towercos will want to be mindful that
seek to prohibit RAN sharing
they have autonomy on the management of their in an MLA are numbered (if
Ahmed el-Gaili, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: The ground lease portfolios, are not subject to undue not over). The status of the law
lengthy duration of the MLA makes it particularly interference from their anchor tenants (which could
important for the parties to resolve any natural undermine their independence) and maintain the and regulation around RAN
tensions between them at the outset to everybodys ability to move tenants from troublesome sites in sharing does vary tremendously
satisfaction. exceptional circumstances. Balancing these rights
by geography; to take the
and obligations from day one is important for the
extremes, in some markets it is
Rob Patterson, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: For
perhaps 10-20 years or more, the MLA will define
the operators rights and the towercos obligations
in terms of space and capacity on the towers. The
operator will look to ensure sufficient flexibility to
MLA to remain attractive to both parties throughout
its long lifetime.
TowerXchange: RAN sharing is becoming an

increasingly hot topic globally but can have a
mandated and in others it is not
yet legally permitted

deploy and maintain its equipment and provide the significant impact on towerco revenues. How
best possible service to its customers. The towerco should potential RAN sharing agreements that
will be focussed on maintaining sufficient control to could arise be treated in designing MLAs?
maximise co-location opportunities and sufficient and it is therefore important to provide as much
independence to attract other tenants. If these Ahmed el-Gaili, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: The days certainty as possible as to how these arrangements
needs are not suitably balanced in the MLA, both when a towerco would seek to prohibit RAN sharing will work at the outset of the MLA (which should
parties could encounter difficulties and seek to in an MLA are numbered (if not over). The status help to mitigate uncertainty and disagreement
renegotiate the terms of the MLA. of the law and regulation around RAN sharing down the line).
does vary tremendously by geography; to take
Natalie Lamb, Senior Associate, Vinson & the extremes, in some markets it is mandated and Natalie Lamb, Senior Associate, Vinson & Elkins:
Elkins: One good example is renewal of ground in others it is not yet legally permitted. There is, While there are no hard and fast rules on how to
leases. Even a tower with perfect uptime is of however, a likelihood that RAN sharing will be treat RAN sharing in the MLA and establishing how
limited value to an operator if the ground lease for implemented more extensively in a significant to compensate the towerco for loss of revenue or
the land or rooftop on which the tower sits is easily number of markets in the short to medium term opportunity is complex and deal specific, emerging
trends include use of a fee-based model (perhaps still free itself of liabilities associated with the day- business over the term of the MLA). Towercos will
with fees agreed at the outset or alternatively linked to-day running of the sites and would benefit from want reclassification to be limited or, for example,
to the market at the time of the sharing). Parties can a low lease rate. The towerco would acquire the for overall percentages of site classes remain
consider increasing the fees beyond predetermined towers cheaply and would have a more manageable constant. Otherwise they could find themselves
limits, e.g. if instances of RAN sharing or quantity of credit risk from the anchor tenant. having to provide critical site service levels to all
equipment shared are exceeded. Distinctions can or almost all towers.
be made between sharers which are already tenants Ahmed el-Gaili, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: Another
on the tower and other third parties. possibility, which could also apply to co-location Ahmed el-Gaili, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: One
agreements as well as tower transactions, would consideration that parties need to keep in mind is
Rob Patterson, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: The be to have the operators parent company provide that performance of the SLA will often be contingent
parties should also consider whether and how a guarantee of the lease payments. This would of on the state of the towers upon transfer. A towerco
the requirements should change if RAN sharing course depend on whether the parent company had might not be expected to radically improve
becomes mandated by law or by the regulator. a higher credit rating. The towerco might also look performance on the sites on day one if, for example,
to ask for payment of rent in advance rather than the towers and related equipment are not up to
TowerXchange: There is an appetite amongst in arrears and/or a regular payment period and industry standard at the time of transfer. In these
tier 2 operators in sub-Saharan Africa to divest prompt settlement of invoices. instances, the parties should consider whether a
assets but their lower credit rating and thus transition period might apply.
suitability as an anchor tenant have made TowerXchange: In speaking to operators and
the deals less attractive to towercos. How can towercos we see a move towards creating service Rob Patterson, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: We
towercos best protect themselves against future level agreements that not only compensate have seen a move toward additionally rewarding
financial challenges in both tower transactions failures but also reward good performance. the towerco if service levels are consistently
and co-location agreements with such parties? What are key things contractually that both exceeded although SLA trends, like most
parties need to be aware of in creating service contractual provisions in these transactions,
Rob Patterson, Partner, Vinson & Elkins: Towercos level agreements and how have you seen things will vary significantly from jurisdiction to
in a tower transaction might consider staging change? jurisdiction. Another noticeable recent change to
payment of the purchase price for such towers over SLAs in certain jurisdictions has been an increasing
time, perhaps allowing for set off of outstanding Natalie Lamb, Senior Associate, Vinson & Elkins: focus on the measurement of power usage and
consideration against liabilities of the tenant Operators will often want different service improving energy efficiency. If, for example, not
which may arise, e.g. unpaid rent. In sale and levels to apply to different towers. For example, all sites have smart meters, we commonly see
leaseback transactions, the consideration paid for particularly critical towers or hub sites might the parties commit to a glide path of smart meter
the towers normally correlates with the lease rate require faster response and repair times or higher installation. Parties will often also consider how to
agreed between the parties (i.e. the higher the uptime commitments. We therefore typically see share in any gain where sites become more energy
consideration, the higher the lease rate). So a deal different classes of sites provided for in the SLA efficient or less reliant on fossil fuels this requires
could be negotiated where there is a low purchase with some flexibility for the operator to reclassify a certain amount of future proofing and is perhaps
price but also a low lease rate. The operator would between classes (allowing for developments in their a subject for another day!
Tower Xchange
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TowerXchange Europe Dossier 2017

Founded in 2012, TowerXchange is your

Nina Triantis Hal Hess Riana Donaldson

Areef Kassam David Meganck Adeel Bajwa informal network of advisors

FPS TOWERS / FRANCE / WWW.FPSTOWERS.FR / +33 (0)1 45 36 50 80

Contact us for a demo at sales@accruent.com

New Street Research is hosting an invitation-

Up to 70% lower Up to 60% Up to 30% less Trad

Up to 70% lower Up to 60% Up to 30% less

All previous Meetups have SOLD OUT

Register today to guarantee your involvement

TowerXchange Meetup Dinner

Vendor participation limited Prior registration is essential: please note the

independent tower market in Europe

400 860 800400 860 800

300 377 377

200 187 180 156 150 140

NorthStar ACE a revolution in battery management

For more information visit www.northstarbattery.com

In December 2016 American Tower announced the

Deutsche Funkturm report that they are building

out. Already, Iliad owner Xavier Niel, known as

2017 Telefonica Telxius 16,000 KKR 40% 1,300,000,000

2015 Telecom Italia INWIT 11,200 MIB 40% 875,300,000

2015 Abertis Cellnex 15,091 MCE 66% 2,138,000,000

Totals / average 41,758 3,286,420,000 147,082

TowerXchange research has not revealed any infracos or

in European towers 3GIS: Operates a shared network between Telenor

RTRS: State-owned Russian television and

Russian Towers: Leading independent towerco

Tele2: Tele2 has undertaken active infrastructure

Tele2 Russia: Joint venture between Rostelcom

TT-Network: Danish infrastructure sharing joint (VimpelCom branded as Beeline in Russia,

Key products and services buyers are looking to assess include:

RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD

RSVD RSVD RSVD RSVD

Access to main Disabled

Entrance, exit &

Bronze Sponsorship Sponsorship of breakfast (Open) day two

FPS Towers, the only telecom tower pure player in France,

In the three years since its launch, FPS Towers has

FPS Towers owes its strong yet controlled growth to a

To meet the challenges of the extraordinary demand

Tarantula is a proven world leader in telecom site

Cellnex classifies its activities into three areas: Mobile

Cellnexs new acquisition at present almost 40% of company revenues are

was cancelled Telefonica has agreed to sell a 40% stake in

Telxius still looks like a good play in the long

Founded in 2006 by Turkcell, Turkeys largest mobile

FPS positioned themselves as a towerco with a

American Tower: Yes, we welcome the opportunity

Cellnex acquires 261 Dutch towers

Boosted with a substantial M&A warchest from

2016 Protelindo Cellnex 261 109 417,625

Protelindo Netherlands BV is a subsidiary of PT

When closed, Cellnex will own 8.6% of the towers

650 43% of Dutch telecom towers remain MNO-captive,

Spectrum in The Netherlands but nothing of significant scale.

Current status What next for Cellnex?

800MHz Tele2 VOD KPN TowerXchange asked Martinez to share Cellnexs

Cellnex admitted to prestigious IBEX

Cellnex Telecom (CLNX:SM) will been included

Since its debut on the Spanish stock exchange