There’s been yet another development in the long-running story of Brazilian telecommunications company Oi’s attempts to ease its debt by selling off some of its assets. There may now be at least three bidders for the company’s fibre unit.
According to Bloomberg, both Brookfield Asset Management Inc and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board are considering a bid for the unit, called InfraCo, for which as much as 51 percent of shares may be sold. Oi sources quoted by Bloomberg suggest that the InfraCo deal is expected to fetch at least 13 billion reais (about $2.46 billion) if the stake is sold.
Telecommunications infrastructure group Highline do Brasil II Infraestrutura de Telecomunicacoes, owned by Digital Colony, has also shown interest in this division – and in addition has already made a binding offer worth 1.08 billion reais (about $204.6 million) for Oi’s tower unit. A private equity fund has also put in a non-binding bid for InfraCo.
On top of this, the mobile arm of Oi has proved a popular target for would-be buyers, with Digital Colony putting in a bid, outdoing the joint bid of Claro Brasil, Telefonica Brasil and TIM Brasil. The three operators have responded by upping the amount they are willing to spend.
Oi is Brazil’s biggest landline carrier. It has been carrying out a major restructuring since emerging from bankruptcy protection in 2018. As part of this drive it aims to sell most of its assets and concentrate on its landline business. A proposal to segregate Oi’s assets into four units is still awaiting creditor approval.
