Indosat considers stake sale in US$1 billion fibre assets

INDOSAT Ooredoo Hutchison is considering options for its fibre assets including a stake sale, according to people familiar with the matter, as digital infrastructure assets in South-east Asia continue to draw interest from global investors.

The Jakarta-based company is conducting a strategic review for its fibre business, the sources said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. A transaction could value the assets at more than US$1 billion, with other companies in the industry and investment funds potentially interested, the sources said.

Considerations are preliminary and Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison could still decide against pursuing a deal, the sources said. A representative for Indosat declined to comment.

CK Hutchison Holdings and Qatar’s Ooredoo QPSC combined their Indonesian telecom businesses in a US$6 billion transaction last year as the groups sought to fend off competition in South-east Asia’s biggest market by subscribers.

Indosat has been reviewing its digital infrastructure assets amid interest from global investors. It agreed to sell a portfolio of towers to Mitratel earlier this year after a bigger disposal of towers to EdgePoint Infrastructure, a firm backed by DigitalBridge Group and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority in 2021. Last year, Indosat agreed to form a US$300 million joint venture for its data centres with Big Data Exchange, the data-centre platform owned by investment firm I Squared. BLOOMBERG