Vodafone to float telecom towers division
Vodafone has confirmed it is to press ahead with plans to float its multi-billionpound European telecom towers division.
The mobile network giant said it aims to spin off Vantage Towers through a listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by the end of next month. But it stressed the timing of the initial public offering (IPO) was dependent on capital market conditions.
Analysts estimate the float of a minority stake in Vantage could raise up to €4 billion (£3.4bn) for Vodafone, helping the group cut its debt.
Vantage grew its portfolio by 450 new macro sites to 82,000 locations across ten European markets in the nine months to the end of December to boost its reach.
Chief executive Vivek Badrinath said: “The IPO is an important milestone and sets the foundations for the next stage of our growth within the dynamic towers industry.
“We will be looking to capture the exciting value-creating opportunities the sector has to offer and to build on our position as a leading tower infrastructure company in Europe.”
Figures recently showed that Vantage notched up revenues of €725 million for the nine months to the end of December 2020.
Vodafone said: “Vantage Towers is focused on deploying the full potential of its market leading tower infrastructure to serve the increasing demand for connectivity across Europe, driven by data growth, 5G roll-out and regulatory coverage obligations. Vantage Towers enjoys highly visible organic growth, margin expansion and cash generation; with additional value creation potential.”
Greencoat UK Wind has snapped up the remaining stake in a large Scottish wind farm while acquiring an interest in another in deals totalling almost £100 million.
Braes of Doune wind farm in Stirlingshire was commissioned in June 2007 and comprises 36 turbines, with a total capacity of 72 megawatts.
Greencoat now owns 100 per cent of the wind farm, having acquired its original 50 per cent stake in March 2013. It has acquired the remaining 50 per cent interest in Braes of Doune for £48.1m from funds managedbytheinfrastructure team of the international business of Federated Hermes.
In a separate deal, Greencoat has entered into an agreement with Banks Renewables to acquire a 49.9 per cent interest in Kype Muir Extension wind farm for a headline figure of £51.4m, to be paid once the wind farm is fully operational, towards the end of 2022.
Greencoat will also provide construction finance of up to £47m, with first utilisation expected in July 2021.
Kype Muir Extension is located in South Lanarkshire and will comprise 15 turbines, with a total capacity of 67.2 megawatts.
Stephen Lilley of Greencoat Capital, which manages the listed renewable infrastructure fund, said: “We are delighted to acquire the
remaining 50 per cent of Braes of Doune… in which we have been invested since March 2013.
“We are also excited to be partneringwithbanksrenewables on Kype Muir Extension and look forward to acquiring 49.9 per cent of the project in Q4 2022.”
Meanwhile, Scottish renewable energy company Red Rock Power has acquired the Benbrack onshore wind farm development in Dumfries and Galloway from RWE.
The project, located north of Carsphairn, is in late-stage development with a potential capacity of around 72 megawatts and consent for up to 18 turbines.
Benbrack is the company’s second onshore deal in recent months, after the acquisition of a50percentshareofa240-megawatt wind farm in Sweden, in December2020.redrockpower also owns the 50-megawatt Aftononshorewindfarmlocated in East Ayrshire.
Red Rock Power chief executive
Guy Madgwick said: “We are thrilled to bring Benbrack into our growing wind portfolio and take the development forward.
“While we hope to expand our offshore capacity and move into other technologies, onshore wind remains a stable proposition and affordable source of clean energy and so continues to be a central component of our growth strategy.
“We look forward to engaging with local stakeholders and the supply chain in the
coming weeks and months as we continue to finalise the wind farm’s design and prepare for construction.”
The detailed design of the wind farm, including height, number and location of wind turbines, as well as a construction timeline is yet to be finalised. Benbrack was first proposed in 2012 and secured consent in 2017, with further variations to optimise the project secured since.
The London markets jumped higher as strong showings by airliners and hospitality stocks boosted the FTSE.
Early trading was cautious, initially ticking lower, before a confident start to trading in the US helped to spark a broad global rebound in sentiment.
The FTSE 100 closed 33.03 points, or 0.5%, higher at 6,658.97 at the close of play on Wednesday.
Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, said:“european markets have had a much better tone today after a rather mixed session yesterday.
“What hasn’t changed is the underlying tone for travel and leisure stocks which are continuing to build on their recent gains with another strong session.’’
The European markets were also significantly boosted by strong opening on Wall Street following a tough start to the week across the Atlantic.
Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, said: “The Dow Jones was back in the hunt for a record close this Wednesday, shaking off a lacklustre few sessions ahead of the week’s House vote on the American Rescue Plan.’’
The other major European markets also overcame reticent starts with the German Dax showing a particularly strong rebound following a rocky showing on Tuesday.
The German Dax was 0.86% higher and the French Cac moved 0.31% higher.
Improvement in the FTSE came as the price of the pound lost steam against the dollar having sat near multi-year highs at the start of session.
The pound decreased by 0.02% versus the US dollar to 1.411 and was up 0.04% against the euro at 1.162.
In company news, telecoms giant Vodafone slumped towards the bottom of the FTSE 100 after it confirmed it will press ahead with plans to float its European telecom towers arm in a move reportedly set to value the division at 15 billion euros (£13b).
The mobile phone giant said it aims to spin off Vantage Towers through a listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by the end of March.
Shares in Vodafone finished 4.44p lower at 125.5p. Shares were 0.11p higher at 39.33p at the close of play despite it revealing that statutory pre-tax profits fell to £1.2 b, from £4.4b the previous year.
BP and Royal Dutch Shell performed strongly after the price of oil rebounded following Tuesday’s sell-off in the face of the surprise one million increase in US inventories.
The price of Brent crude oil increased by 2.25% to 66.84 dollars per barrel.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were BP, up 15.3p at 298.8p at 298.8p, Rolls-royce, up 5.25p at 111.9p, Land Securities, up 27.1p at 682.6p, and IAG, up 7.3p at 188.9p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Vodafone, up 4.44p at 125.5p, Rentokil, down 11.7p at 470p, Experian, down 53p at 2,330p, and Unilever, down 81p at 3,839p.