La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) and AMP Capital have agreed to invest up to a billion dollars to help fund the construction of new telecommunications towers across the US.
CDPQ, an investor that manages C$298.5bn (€193.8bn) funds primarily from public and parapublic pension plans and the $146.8bn (€125.4bn) investment manager AMP will provide $500m of financing to Tillman Infrastructure’s US tower rollout.
As part of the agreement, the investment could eventually reach up to $1bn based on future growth needs, the investors said.
Founded in 2016, Tillman builds, owns and operates a portfolio of cell towers. Tillman began construction on its first sites in late 2017 and is actively building in over three dozen states across the US.
Marc Cormier, the executive vice-president of fixed income at CDPQ, said: “With Tillman’s strong leadership and seasoned experts, along with our partner AMP Capital, we look forward to contributing to Tillman’s great potential.
“It has a competitive product that delivers coast-to-coast speed and efficiency. The company will only continue to benefit from a growing demand for data that will drive mobile infrastructure spending and development for years to come.”
Patrick Trears, a partner at AMP Capital’s infrastructure debt, said: “The proliferation of data globally will see an increasing demand for telecommunication infrastructure and Tillman is well-positioned to capitalise on the growth opportunity.
“The transaction marks the second investment in telecommunications infrastructure in the region since the close of AMP Capital’s Infrastructure Debt Fund III last year and highlights the strength of our partnerships with leading institutional investors like CDPQ.”
Suruchi Ahuja, Tillman Infrastructure’s CFO, said: “We are excited to have found great partners in CDPQ and AMP Capital to fuel the next stage of our aggressive growth plans.
”We are committed to continue to be the carrier friendly and carrier preferred infrastructure provider, and a true partner to our customers as they focus on expanding their coverage and capacity across the nation.”
