August 16, 2022
Gibson Dunn advised MIESCOR Infrastructure Development Corporation (MIDC) on its acquisition of 2,180 telecom towers and related passive infrastructure from Globe Telecom, Inc. (Globe) (PSE: GLO) for a total consideration of approximately $472.2 million USD (P26.2 billion). In conjunction with additional tower sales by Globe to other interested parties (both announced and planned), the deal will represent the largest ever mobile towers transaction in the Philippines. As part of the transaction, MIDC and Globe executed a Master Lease Agreement, under which Globe will be the anchor tenant of the telecom towers for an initial period of 15 years. In addition, Globe has commissioned MIDC to construct 750 additional build-to-suit towers over the next four years on which Globe will be the anchor tenant. More information can be found in the announcement release.
MIDC is an independent tower company that provides tower construction, site acquisition, site permitting and erection of towers, and tower management services to telecommunications companies. The company is a joint venture between MIESCOR, a subsidiary of Meralco – the largest private sector electric distribution utility in the Philippines – and Stonepeak, a leading alternative investment firm specializing in infrastructure and real estate assets.
The Gibson Dunn team was led by Connell O’Neill (Partner, Hong Kong), head of the firm’s TMT practice in Asia and included infrastructure partner Patricia Tan Openshaw (Partner, Hong Kong), TMT lawyers Nate Hancock (Hong Kong) and Nick Hay (Hong Kong) and associates Eliza Teo (Singapore) and Yaqi Han (Hong Kong). Antitrust partner Sébastien Evrard (Partner, Hong Kong) and finance lawyer Charles P. Osborne (London) also worked on the deal.