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The financial size of the deal has not been disclosed
Cellnex and Boldyn Networks have reached an agreement that will se Boldyn will acquire Cellnex’s private networks business unit.
The acquisition will primarily consist of Cellnex’s Finnish subsidiary Edzcom, which designs, builds, and operates private 4G and 5G networks. The company already has operations in various industrial sectors including oil and gas, mining, energy, ports, and manufacturing across multiple European markets.
Cellnex itself only acquired Edzcom in 2020.
Boldyn Networks, meanwhile, are one of the largest neutral host providers in the world. As such the company is well positioned to further accelerate Edzcom’s growth, according to Cellnex’s global innovation, business development and technology director Oscar Pallarols.
“Boldyn Networks is the ideal operator to usher Edzcom into a new phase of expansive growth. Given that private networks are among Boldyn’s core activities, they are undoubtedly the ideal partner for Edzcom in this next phase of their growth,” said Pallarols.
“Edzcom’s team capabilities, impeccable reputation and recognised expertise are an important addition to our team to capture the potential of this market across continents,” addd Igor Leprince, Group CEO of Boldyn Networks in a press release.
“From venues and wind farms to ports and manufacturing sites, we are building upon being the partner of choice for 5G private and converged network infrastructure projects.”
The move will serve to further enhance Boldyn Networks’ presence in multiple European markets, most notably in Finland, Spain, Germany, Sweden, and France.
The sale seems a natural fit for Cellnex, which is seeking to reduce its large debt pile, which stood at €17.2 billion in Q2 after years of intense M&A. This including major acquisitions such as the takeover of CK Hutchinson’s European towers in 2020 (worth €10 billion).
More recently, however, the company has shifted focus on consolidating its existing business units. In September, Investment company Stonepeak acquired a 49% stake in Cellnex Nordics, which raised €730 million of capital for Cellnex.
The deal is subject to standard regulatory approval and is set to be completed by the end of Q1 next year.
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