Saudi Arabia’s PIF to Consider Bidding for Ooredoo’s Tower Unit

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is among suitors weighing a final bid for network towers being sold by Qatari telecom firm Ooredoo QPSC, people familiar with the matter said. Ooredoo shares jumped in Doha trading.
American Tower Corp., IHS Holding Ltd. and Helios Towers Plc are also considering binding offers for all or part of the portfolio, according to people, who asked not to be identified as the matter is private. Ooredoo’s tower assets, which span the Persian Gulf region, as well as countries including Algeria, could be valued at $3 billion to $5 billion in any deal, they said.
Bids are due in the coming days, the people said. Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty any of the suitors will decide to submit offers.
Ooredoo said in September that it will carve out its portfolio of almost 20,000 towers as part of a shift to an asset-light model. The state-owned telecom operator recently sold its Myanmar business for an enterprise value of $576 million and is also considering carving out its data center unit to attract new investors into the business.
The shares of Ooredoo climbed as much as 6.9%, the most in more than five years, valuing the telecom operator at about $9 billion.
PIF plans to invest $24 billion in Middle Eastern and North African countries as Saudi Arabia seeks to bolster regional economies, it said in October, and will channel funds into sectors including infrastructure, heath care and telecoms.