A consortium of Canadian investors is poised to buy Wind Mobile in a move aimed at strengthening the wireless carrier’s push to become a major player in the telecommunications game.
Globalive Capital, the investment company run by Wind Mobile CEO Anthony Lacavera, announced Tuesday (September 16) it would buy out Dutch telecom giant VimpelCom’s stake in the company.
Amsterdam-based VimpelCom confirmed it was selling its interest in Wind Mobile for $135 million. The company said the deal would also release it from “certain debt obligations of Wind Canada.”
Lacavera told Business in Vancouver the total deal, which is still subject to regulatory approval, was worth about $280 million and the new owners would assume about $150 million in debt from VimpelCom.
The buy-back deal was partially supported through funding from an investors group made up of West Face Capital, Tennenbaum Capital Partners, LG Capital Investors, Serruya Private Equity and Novus Wireless Communications.
“(The deal) clearly brings stable, long-term ownership to Wind,” Lacavera said.
In January, Wind Mobile announced it had to withdraw from a coveted 700-megahertz wireless spectrum auction after VimpelCom would not fund the effort to expand the company’s reach.
“Clearly we need more spectrum to roll out a next-generation LTE network,” Lacavera said, adding the company is considering a bid in the next wireless spectrum auction scheduled for spring 2015.
One thing that appears to be off the table, however, is selling Wind Mobile to one of Canada’s “big three” wireless carriers — Telus (TSX:T), Rogers (TSX:RCI.A) and Bell (TSX:BCE).
Vancouver-based Telus repeatedly tried to buy the regional carrier Mobilicity, which is currently under creditor protection. The federal government, however, quashed those efforts three times.
Lacavera said it’s unlikely Ottawa will change its tune in the foreseeable future, which means “the spectrum Wind owns is going to stay in competitive hands.”
Wind Mobile has about 750,000 customers in B.C., Alberta and Ontario.
Lacavera said despite the change in ownership, the company is going to concentrate on the markets it’s already in as opposed to expanding into other provinces.
