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Private equity firms reportedly seek to offload stakes in STP in a deal that could value it at $1 billion.
Solusi Tunas Pratama (STP) is reportedly up for sale, a move that could bring consolidation to Indonesia’s telecom towers market.
The firm’s private equity owners Carlyle and Southern Capital have appointed an adviser to help them find a buyer for their stakes in the towers company, which together amount to almost 69%, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the situation.
Two of the sources named Protelindo, Indonesia’s largest independent towers company, and Tower Bersama as possible buyers, as well as other local and regional companies, and international pension and infrastructure funds. An executive at PT Telkom also confirmed to the newswire that the telco is in early talks with STP, but said it is considering a range of options for its own towers business.
First-round bids for STP are due by the end of the month, the sources said.
Any deal could value STP at around the US$1 billion mark, they said. As it stands, the firm has a market value of 7.4 trillion rupiah (€473 million/$554 million), but the PE firms are seeking a significant premium on that valuation, they explained.
Entities controlled by Carlyle hold 25.5% of STP, while Southern Capital-owned entities have 43.2%. The PE firms could end up retaining a minority stake in STP, depending on the structure of the deal, the sources said.
