TowerXchange Issue 8

Tower Xchange LatAm - lets meetup!
Join 200 decision makers, representing 42 towercos and

The journal for the emerging market telecom tower industry
carriers, at the TowerXchange Meetup Americas
Issue 8 | May 2014 | www.towerxchange.com
TowerXchange Americas: TowerXchange Africa: TowerXchange Asia:

< 20k Brazilian towers for sale, BTS analysis < Market size and forecasts for next two years < The structure of the Myanmar tower rollout
< Impact of LTE and Tower Law on Chile < Airtel tower sale preview, including Nigeria < Axiata spins out and launches edotco
< The ground lease aggregation model < Opportunities in Chad, Niger and Burkina Faso < CEO interviews: edotco, STP and IGT!
Plus TowerXchanges analysis of American Towers International strategy Tower Xchange

With special thanks to the TowerXchange Inner Circle
Our informal network of advisers: About TowerXchange
TowerXchange is your independent

Chairman: Daniel Lee Alan Harper Rajat Malhotra Laurentius Human
Managing Director CEO CEO, Middle East & Africa CEO communityfor operators, towercos, investors
Intrepid Advisory Partners Eaton Towers Hayat Communications Inala andsuppliers interested in emerging market
towers. Were acommunity of practitioners
Michel Faivre Zouhair Khaliq Chris Gabriel Riana Donaldson formed to promoteand accelerate
Directeur Programme Consultant, Executive former CEO, Zain Africa Manager: International infrastructure sharing in Africa, Asia and
Partage Director Senior Adviser, Macquarie Network
Latin America. TowerXchange dont build,
dInfrastructure AMEA Warid Telecom, Former Group Chairman, Clean Operations Support
France Telecom-Orange CEO, Orascom Intl Investment Power Systems Vodacom operate orinvest in towers; were a neutral
communityhost and commentator on emerging
Fazal Hussain Jim Eisenstein David Meganck Thorsten Schaefer market telecomsinfrastructure.
CEO Chairman & CEO, Founder & COO CEO
Deka Global Grupo TorreSur Acsys azeti Networks The TowerXchange Journal is free to
qualifyingrecipients. We also provide
Nina Triantis Kurt Bagwell Chuck Green Nobel Tanihaha
Managing Director, Global President CEO President Director webinars and regular meetups.
Head of Telecoms & Media International, SBA Helios Towers Africa PT Solusi Tunas Pratama (STP) TowerXchangemonetisesthis community
Standard Bank Communications through hosting annualMeetups and the sale
Marc Ganzi Andrew Doyle of advertising, withoutcompromising editorial
Jeffrey Eldredge James Maclaurin President, Digital Bridge Managing Director
integrity.
Partner CEO Holdings & Mexico Tower Tech & Comms Practice
Vinson & Elkins edotco Partners Mott MacDonald
TowerXchange was founded by
Ayman Al Adl Areef Kassam Adeel Bajwa John Stevens KieronOsmotherly, a TMT community host and
Director, TMT, Middle East Director of Infrastructure Senior GM of Legal Affairs CEO eventsorganizer with 16 years experience,
& Africa GSMA Mobile for and Contracts Irrawaddy Green Towers and is governed with the support and advice
Standard Chartered Bank Development Warid Telecom
of theTowerXchange Inner Circle an
Torsten Esbjrn Natasha Good Inder Bajaj informalnetwork of advisors
Regional Director, Africa Partner CEO
Ramboll Freshfields Helios Towers Nigeria 2014 Site Seven Media Ltd. All rights reserved. Neither the whole
nor any substantial part of this publication may be re-produced,
Gary Staunton Ahjeeth JaiJai Tunde Titilayo stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without
CEO Consultant Vice Chairman the prior permission of Site Seven Media Ltd. Short extracts may be
quoted if TowerXchange is cited as the source. TowerXchange is a
Likusasa Group Investec SWAP International
trading name of Site Seven Media Ltd, registered in the UK. Company
number 8293930.
2 | TowerXchange Issue 8 | www.towerxchange.com www.towerxchange.com | TowerXchange Meetup | 11

Contents
47 LatAm: Brazil, Chile and

Argentina 81 Africa: Burkina Faso, Chad,
Niger and Nigeria 103 Asia: exclusive CEO interviews
with STP, edotco and IGT
50 Introduction to the LatAm tower industry 82 African towers: market size and growth forecasts 104 Nobel Tanihaha, President Director of STP
55 Seeking value in the Brazilian towers market 89 A preview of Airtels African tower sale 107 edotco launches; we interview CEO and CTO
57 Planex on the Argentinian tower industry 93 A closer look at Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger 115 The structure of the tower industry in Myanmar
62 Chile case study: LTE and Tower Law 98 The changing shape of the Nigerian tower industry 119 John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers
Regular features
9 News: deals, launches and licenses

20 TowerXchange Meetup Americas agenda
50 LatAm tower count + middle market towercos
82 Africa tower count and heatmap
115 Myanmar tower count
Special features
144 RMS and site management

systems 166 Rooftops, masts and
towers
5 AMTs international portfolio
39 EYs intro to towerco business models
45 Hardiman on the Italian tower market
145 How to select and deploy RMS 167 Evaluating and strengthening existing towers
150 ConnectM + Gemalto: intelligent tower management 171 Can Brazilian towers accommodate multiple tenants? 135 Ground lease aggregators
154 Caryon Development advocate Smart Towers 175 Rooftops, billbards and IBS in Mexico 182 TowerPower: Bergey, Ballard, Power-One, TSi
Power, Imergy and Trojan battery
159 The latest from AIO Systems and azeti 179 From boutique manufacturer to global tower provider
3 | TowerXchange Issue 6 | www.towerxchange.com www.towerxchange.com | TowerXchange Issue 8 | 3

Africas leading, HTA acquires, builds and manages wireless
telecom infrastructure, leasing it to mobile
independent, network operators across Ghana, Tanzania
telecom tower and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
company HTAs model of shared telecoms infrastructure,
and its scale, helps to deliver improved
efficiency and network quality and reliability
for operators, reduced costs for users and
increased accessibility.
Find out more about our business
www.heliostowersafrica.com
TowerXchanges analysis of
Given our focus on the tower industry in Africa,
LatAm and Asia, I thought TowerXchange readers
American Towers International

might be interested if we isolated some of the key
data points relating to AMTs international strategy.
portfolio AMT currently owns over 39,000 sites outside its

domestic US market. AMTs international segment
As the leading towerco reports their annual results, TowerXchange accounted for around 25% of Operating Profit
examines the figures to summarise AMTs international strategy during Q4 2013, and contributed close to 40% of
the total growth in EBITDA, as a function of organic
growth and recent acquisitions, particularly in
AMT International tower count as of December 31, 2013 (excludes DAS)
Brazil and Mexico.
United States 27,739 Mexico 8,369 Germany 2,031

AMT continues to leverage its international portfolio
to supplement its domestic growth and expects its
Colombia 3,461
international operations to generate organic core
growth rates of at least 200-300 basis points above
those of the U.S.
India 11,529 Brazil 6,746
International tenancy ratios
AMT believes that the lower current average

tenancy ratio and gross margin profile of its
international portfolio combined with solid
Peru Costa Panama
structural characteristics and attractive geographic
Ghana 1,969 South Africa 1,900 Uganda 1,164 Chile 1,150 498 Rica 456 57
distribution, provides an excellent opportunity for
strong, sustainable long term international growth.
In 2013, we drove record levels of organic growth in both our US and international segments and
added over 10,000 sites to our global asset base through the acquisitions of the GTP and NII portfolios Historically, AMT has achieved impressive
and our ongoing site construction program, said American Tower (AMT) Chairman, President and growth in tenancy ratios and revenue per tower
CEO Jim Taiclet during the conference call announcing AMTs 2013 results. Taiclet later continued: we on legacy sites in markets such as Brazil and
have purposely and methodically expanded our asset base to over 67,000 towers that deliver strong Mexico. We have nearly doubled our revenue
organic growth as well as the highest margins in our industry. per tower on a constant currency basis for
XX | TowerXchange Issue 8 | www.towerxchange.com www.towerxchange.com | TowerXchange Issue 8 | 5

Tenancy ratios in selected AMT International markets
Uganda Brazil
1.1 1.4
Ghana Mexico South
1.4 1.5 Africa
1.8
Source: American Tower 2013 International Analyst Day Presentation
our international sites in place since the end the original 1,364 site portfolio impressive environment considerations. Like most towercos,
of 2003, while simultaneously increasing the considering the acquisition included 459 they are attracted to competitive markets with
gross margin percentage, stated Taiclet on rooftops. three or more major carriers as prospective
the conference call. Excluding pass-through tenants, and where data network deployments
revenues, such as ground rent and generator Tom Bartlett, EVP and CFO of American Tower are imminent or ongoing.
fuel in the relevant markets, these sites currently concluded we believe our international
generate gross margins significantly in excess of operations will continue to generate organic AMT understandably offer few clues as to their
90% today. core growth rates significantly in excess of our appetite for specific international acquisition
domestic operations. In our view, the long-term opportunities, except to emphasise their
While tenancy ratios have more than doubled growth story in international is very exciting. continuing strategy to deepen their presence in
in Brazil since towers were acquired (see legacy markets. This would seem consistent
infographic), similar growth has been achieved Further acquisitions with unconfirmed rumours suggesting AMTs
in South Africa, where AMT reports a current continued appetite for opportunities in
tenancy ratio of over 2 tenants per site on the AMT prioritises international investments Mexico and Brazil, and AMTs widely rumored
original portfolio they purchased from Cell C utilising an extensive evaluation process, withdrawal from interest in any portions of the
in 2011, having added over 700 co-locations to including political, economic and business Airtel Africa portfolio of 15,000 towers currently
6 | TowerXchange Issue 8 | www.towerxchange.com www.towerxchange.com | TowerXchange Issue 8 | XX

Example tenancy ratio growth (American Tower Brazil 2002-13) Conclusion
3.5
AMT is a growth stock and the company views
its international portfolio as an excellent
complement to its assets in the U.S. where it
3 has created tremendous shareholder value
by acquiring and upgrading key macro cell
sites and leasing space to support carriers
2.5 transition from an era of voice-centricity to
the era of data-centricity. That voice to data
transition is still taking place in international
2
markets, and AMT is acquiring assets and
building towers to ride this international
1.5
wave of data demand growth. The need
for cell site densification in International
markets is illustrated by the fact that there are
approximately 4,000 subscribers per cell site
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 in Brazil, and 3,000 subscribers per cell site in
Source: American Tower Analyst Presentation 2013 South Africa, compared to 1,100 in the US.
being brought to market. AMT did emphasise US$150k-$200k in LatAm and EMEA and US$225k- AMT has a significant tower footprint in North
that we are first and foremost having the US as a $275k in the US. They spoke of the very high and South America, including its legacy core
priority. rates of return on build-to-suit activity, and their international markets of Brazil and Mexico
enthusiasm to allocate as much capital as possible where it has been operating for nearly 15
There have recently been unsourced rumors to the category. CFO Tom Bartlett suggesting if years. In addition, the company has materially
connecting AMT with a bid to acquire Viom you use TCF, tower cash flow, divided by cost enhanced its presence in other regions over
Networks, which operates around 42,000 towers in as a surrogate for rate of return, if you go back the last several years to solidify its position as
India. and you take a look at our 2009 towers that we a global player in the industry. This includes
built, we are generating 20% rate of returns on tower portfolios in India, South Africa, Ghana,
Build to suit economics our international portfolio and over 10% on the Uganda and Germany, markets in various
US portfolio. BTS activity generally comes with stages of wireless development where AMT
AMT provided a rule of thumb comparison of an anchor tenant under MLA and AMT typically sees significant opportunities for profitable
macro site build costs of US$30k-$50k in India, looks to add another tenant within 36 months. growth

Myanmar: the most investible to none. Ehize Ilozavbie, Chief Legal Officer at
SWAP TECHNOLOGIES AND TELECOMMS
tower market in the world Myanmar is set to grow the nationwide tower base
from 1,800 to circa 15,000 sites over the next five
If given US$200mn to invest in emerging market towers, 27% of years, with mobile penetration going from 6% to
TowerXchange LinkedIn Group members would acquire assets in Myanmar 80% in the same period. Despite the frontier market
risk and the greenfield nature of the roll-out, any
TowerXchange conducted a light-hearted survey via our LinkedIn group to ask If you had US$200mn well managed tower portfolio in Myanmar is bound
to invest in emerging market towers, in which country would you prefer to acquire assets? to generate above-average returns in the medium
30% to long term. Paul Hemming, Director, Redwing
Asia
25%
Most Investments are made to get high returns;
20%
you can not beat Nigeria in terms of ROI! All
15% procedures may not always be proper, but then the
27 tower industry is not killed (as yet) by greedy town
22
10% 20 councils and municipalities! Surendra Kulkarni,
15 15 CTO, Glomobile Ghana
5%
I am in Myanmar and we have all been

Myanmar Brazil Nigeria DRC Mexico transported back to 1996, the first time a towerco
has the opportunity to build a new network to
What would be your vote? accommodate four operators from the very start.
Selected comments on the survey from TowerXchange LinkedIn group members: Great country many challenges such nice people.
Brian Edwards, Operations Director, Apollo
Myanmar provides a very unique opportunity The constitutional reform in telecommunications Towers Myanmar
to the world for green field roll out and hence the in Mexico 2013 states the building of a wholesale
learning from all other emerging markets can network in the 700 MHz band, this makes Why would I invest in the DRC? DRC is a
be put to use to optimise design, cost and opex (Mexico) a great option. - Ramiro Robledo, challenging but proven market. Helios Towers
with green energy solutions for the roll out of the Director, Regulatory Projects, Federal DRC has achieved impressive tenancy ratios on
network. Excellent opportunity for MNOs, towercos Telecommunications Institute, Mexico the towers acquired from Millicom Tigo in 2010.
and OEMs to combine their energy and resources to However, DRCs most extensive tower network
put all best practices to use. Sandeep Kaul, then The appetite for towers in Nigeria is insatiable yet, is Airtels, currently available as part of Airtels
CTO, IHS Nigeria but for the setbacks of power, the market is second African tower sale.

The DRC has a long runway for growth: with a
Africa News
population of 75.5mn, DRC has mobile penetration
of just 17.5%, but growing fast. The overlay of 3G
commenced in 2012 and is stimulating demand for
infill sites. Four of Africas top six operators are Nigeria
present in DRC (Airtel, Orange, Tigo and Vodacom) MTN Nigeria tower sale process well followed by Glo with 24.5mn and Etisalat with
and Ziad Dallouls Africell leveraged tenancies under way 18.1mn. MTN remain market leaders with 57.2mn
on Helios towers to come to market quickly and MTN kicked off a process to sell the largest tower subscribers. New Airtel Africa CEO Christan de
competitively. network in Nigeria, an estimated 9-10,000 towers, Faria called the statistics a clear indication of the
earlier in 2014. The portfolio unquestionably trust that a growing sector of the population have
For me the downsides of investing in DRC towers represents the most valuable single country package started to have in usNigeria continues to be a very
translate to barriers to entry for competitors. There of African tower assets brought to market to date, competitive telecoms market and our intention is to
is some country risk in a country with ongoing and could command a valuation above US$1bn, ensure that we continue to innovate and make life
conflict, particularly in East, but the perceived risk depending on MTNs preferred leaseback rate easier for our customers.
may be greater than the actual. Nigeria Senegal Egypt
IHS raises a further US$130mn from Sonatel and MobiNil tower sales
Running a towerco in a country with such under- existing investors continue to progress
developed power and transport infrastructure is Less than two months after announcing a US$490mn According to TMT Finance, a shortlist of three
a tremendous challenge. Most cell sites outside capital raise, IHS has secured a further US$130mn bidders has reportedly been drawn up for MobiNils
Kinshasa and Lubumbashi are off-grid, and the from existing investors, pushing total capital raised 2,500-3,000 Egyptian towers, with the deal
delivered cost of a dollars worth of diesel can be beyond US$1.6mn. potentially closing before the publication of the
US$1.80. So the caveat I attach is that I would only Summer edition of the TowerXchange Journal well
back a management team with proven experience IHS are likely to bid aggressively for several of the cover it in more detail at that time.
in frontier tower markets. Kieron Osmotherly, portfolios of towers currently for sale in Africa,
CEO, TowerXchange giving particular priority to their native market Meanwhile, another MNO in which Orange owns a
Nigeria, where MTN, Airtel and Etisalat have a stake, Sonatel, is progressing the sale of 3,000 towers
total of around 18,000 towers for sale which across Senegal, Mali, Guinea Bissau and Guinea
Read TowerXchanges latest analyses coincidentally might attract an aggregate valuation Conakry
and interviews first, and share your near to the US$1.6mn total capital raised to date Rwanda Zambia
opinions, by joining the TowerXchange by IHS, depending on the usual variables (deal IHS closes deal to acquire MTN
structure, lease back rate, contract duration etc) towers in Rwanda and Zambia
LinkedIn group FREE at:
First reported in issue 7 of TowerXchange, IHSs
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/ Nigeria
Airtel now #2 in Nigeria latest deal with MTN has now been completed with
TowerXchange-4536974 Data released by the NCC in February 2014 slightly modified tower counts, as is often the case.
shows that Airtel Nigeria had a 26.2mn subscribers, IHS has acquired and will manage a total of 1,269

HIGH STANDARD
SOLUTIONS -
FOR YOUR TOP
PERFORMANCE
www.leadcom-is.com
towers, broken down as 550 in Rwanda and 719 in This acquisition is in line with our stated strategy the coveted OSHAS 18001 certification mark to
Zambia, representing 100% of MTNs towers in the of strengthening our market position through demonstrate their conformance to the standard.
two countries. The deal also includes a build-to-suit in-country acquisitions, as and when suitable
programme opportunities come along. We are at an advance OHSAS 18001 was first introduced in 1999 and
Zambia
stage of successfully integrating Warids Uganda requires organisations to assess their risk and
Fourth MNO license for Zambia operations with that of Airtel and look forward to implement an effective occupational health and
a similarly swift transition in Congo Brazzaville safety management system to promote a safe
ITWeb Africa quote Zambian Minister of as well. As already demonstrated in Uganda, the and healthy working environment. Certified
Communications and Transport, Yamfwa Mukanga merger will bring more value for the customers in organisations are committed to continuous
suggesting the previously postponed issue of the form of affordable data and roaming tariffs, improvement and are assessed annually to ensure
a fourth mobile license would follow after the innovative products, Airtel Money, world-class progress is being maintained.
implementation of the digital migration project, networks and customer care, said Manoj Kohli,
saying The government is concerned with the CEO (International) of Bharti Airtel We are particularly pleased to have achieved the
high cost of communication. So the fourth mobile Uganda Tanzania Burundi OSHAS 18001 certification in all of our existing
operator will come with many advantages including Smart East Africa launches markets as it underlines our commitment to our
reduced cost of making phone calls and other customers and our focus on quality of service.
services. Vodacom continue to be rumoured to Smart East Africa, a subsidiary of the Aga Khan We are the first and only OSHAS 18001 certified
be interested in Zambia. Airtel are current market Fund for Development, is launching operations in company in each of our markets, said Chuck
leaders, followed by Zamtel and MTN. According Uganda, Tanzania and Burundi. Green, CEO of Helios Towers Africa
to BMI data reported in TowerXchange, Zambias Tanzania
mobile penetration was 71.1% at the end of 2012 At the Kampala launch, Group CEO Abdellatif Helios Towers Tanzania launches IBS
and is forecast to reach 91.2% by 2017. ARPU is Bouziani called attention to his firms experience
around the US$5 mark in Afghanistan and Tajikistan, and the AGA Khan HTAs Tanzanian opco Helios Towers Tanzania
Congo Brazzaville Development Networks 100 years experience of (HTT) launched their In-Building Solutions strategy
MNO consolidation continues as Airtel investment in East Africa, as evidence of their at an event at the Kilimanjara Regency Hotel in Dar
again acquires Warid assets experience es Salaam recently.
DRC Ghana Tanzania
Having acquired Warids business in Uganda HTA achieves OSHAS 18001 As the sector matures there is a clear mandate to
and Bangladesh, Bharti has repeated the feat by compliance improve the breadth and quality of these services;
acquiring Warids subsidiary in Congo Brazzaville. namely voice and data services. Tanzania has
The transaction is thought to be valued at US$70- Congratulations to HTA on completing their clean seen a wide proliferation of next generation
80mn. The deal adds Warids 1mn customers to sweep of OSHAS 18001 certification in each of their technologies like 3G and 4G services, said Norman
Airtels market leading 1.6mn customers, vaulting existing markets, Ghana, Tanzania and the DRC. Moyo, CEO of HTT. HTTs IBS are expected to
the Indian telco above MTN as the market leader in improve QoS in large and tall buildings as well as
Congo Brazzaville. All HTA operations have earned the right to display along roads

For instance, operators will need to identify
GSMA announces infrastructure sharing those markets where there is a lack of regulatory
clarity around voluntary network infrastructure
initiative across the Middle East and Africa sharing arrangements. For its part, the GSMA will
offer continuous support for the development of
Initiative aims to enhance use of network infrastructure to connect
progressive policy environments and national
underserved communities regulatory frameworks that allow for voluntary
Quoting selectively from the GSMAs press release; < Ahmad Julfar, Group CEO, Etisalat Group commercial sharing arrangements.
at a high-level meeting at Mobile World Congress < Sifiso Dabengwa, CEO and President, MTN Group
in Barcelona, senior leaders from eight major < Dr. Nasser Marafih, Group CEO, Ooredoo Group TowerXchange: What specific steps can
mobile operator groups, covering 551 million < Marc Rennard, Senior Executive Vice President, governments take to support and encourage
mobile connections across Africa and the Middle Africa, Middle East and Asia, Orange infrastructure sharing in MEA, both in terms
East, announced a plan to cooperate on network < Abdulaziz A. Alsugair, Chairman and Managing of regulatory frameworks and in terms of
infrastructure sharing initiatives that recognise Director, STC Group facilitating access to government-owned assets?
the profound impact of mobile broadband and < Serpil Timuray, CEO, Africa, Middle East and Asia
Internet services on the citizens of both regions. The Pacific Region, Vodafone Group Peter Lyons, Director of Public Policy, GSMA:
participating operators have made this commitment < Scott Gegenheimer, CEO, Zain Group The regulatory framework of a country should
in order to provide Internet and mobile broadband facilitate all types of voluntary infrastructure
access to unserved rural communities and drive TowerXchange contacted the GSMA to learn more sharing arrangements, which can involve the
down the cost of mobile services for all sections of about this initiative sharing of various components of mobile networks,
the population. including both so-called passive and active sharing.
TowerXchange: Its exciting to read that 8 of the Governments can help by providing regulatory
This cooperation demonstrates that the industry leading operators in MEA plan to cooperate on clarity so that market participants can consider such
is committed to innovating in order to serve the network sharing initiatives that will accelerate arrangements.
billions living in the rural areas, said Manoj Kohli, provision of Internet and mobile broadband
Managing Director, Bharti Enterprises and Chair of access to rural communities - can you give us TowerXchange: Are these initiatives currently
the Public Policy Committee of the GSMA board, who some detail on how these initiatives will work in focusing solely on passive infrastructure sharing,
also supports the initiative. We call on governments practice? or is there provision or appetite for active
to support and encourage the commercial infrastructure sharing or RANsharing in the
infrastructure sharing arrangements that we aim to Peter Lyons, Director of Public Policy, GSMA: With future?
propose. the strategic direction now set at the regional
level, the next step is for operators to undertake Peter Lyons, Director of Public Policy, GSMA: This
An impressive roster of senior leaders have attached an extensive review of the relevant regulatory, initiative covers passive infrastructure sharing, and
their names to this infrastructure sharing initiative: commercial, and technical conditions in each of where technically feasible, active infrastructure
< Christian de Faria, CEO Africa, Bharti Airtel their operating markets across these 48 countries. sharing

4G LTE, mergers and capital Sources suggest to TowerXchange that there are
three substantial tower portoflios at various
stages of coming to market in Brazil, including
raising make the headlines in LatAm two privately owned tower firms and one sale
and leaseback opportunity.
Consolidation rumours persist while networks upgrades
throughout the region keep progressing The sales are at various stages of progress but we
forecast that a total tower count in five digits will
Mexico change hands in the next two quarters.
Mexican secondary telecoms reform coverage to 50% of the Colombian population in
Brazil
delayed the next three months.
TIM Brasils likely next moves
The critical secondary telecom legislation is Columbia
still pending before the Mexican Congress. In a Une-EPM and Tigo Colombia merger
TIM Brasil is likely to bid in the upcoming
recent statement, Chamber of Deputies President receives regulatory approval
700 MHz spectrum auction following a
Jose Gonzalez Morfin informed the press that The national antitrust authority of Colombia
recommendation by its Board of Directors. The
lawmakers are likely to meet for special sessions has approved the merger between state-owned
auction is likely to take place in August, following
to define the content of the legislation during the Une-EPM and Millicoms Tigo. The companies
a public consultation during the month of May.
month of May. have eight months to come to an agreement with
regards to which blocks of their spectrum will
Mexico While exploring their move, TIM Brasil is also
Telefonica targets Iusacell be given back to the Ministry of Information
assessing divesting its portfolio of approximately
Technology and Communication.
7,000 towers in order to raise the capital needed
Bloomberg report that Telefonica is in talks to
to then deploy 4G LTE across the country.
acquire Iusacell, Mexicos third ranked operator. The merger would result in the new entity
Currently, the company is looking for new
Mott MacDonald report that Iusacell has 8% holding the rights for 135MHz of frequencies
financial advisers to work on the sale of its
market share, with Telefonica on 19%. A merger in spite of 85MHz being the limit per operator.
telecom towers in Brazil after a senior specialist
could create a stronger competitor for America Une-EPM and Tigo Colombia would then have 28
of Morgan Stanley, their current adviser, left the
Movils Telcel, which leads the market with 69%. months to hand back the spectrum.
bank.
Columbia
Portugal Brazil
Claro Colombia announces 4G In the event of the companies failing to reach an
Oi-PT merger receives
investment plans agreement, the authority could impose them fines
Portuguese competition
The leading carrier is likely to invest US$1bn to up to US$31.8mn.
watchdog approval
develop its 4G network over the course of 2014,
Brazil The Autoridade da Concorrencia (AdC) of
as stated by the companys President Juan Carlos Substantial portfolios likely to change
Portugal has recently approved the tie-up
Archila. The project aims at expanding LTE hands in Brazil
between Brazilians Oi and Portugal Telecom

Brazil
following its Brazilians equivalent, Cade, green Investors pour capital into middle UBS as an advisor to conduct a strategic review
light on the deal. market towercos as BTS is outsourced in which could result in a sale of part, or all of the
Brazil company. NII trades as Nextel in Brazil, Mexico,
Brazil
Potential dropouts in Ois quest for Bloomberg report that five different middle Chile and Argentina.
capital funding market towercos in Brazil, Brazil Tower Company, Argentina
Highline do Brasil, T4U, QMC and CSS, have Nextel Argentina assessing 4G
Brazils Ita Unibanco Holding SA is rumoured attracted investment form seven private equity opportunities
to be considering leaving the consortium firms including Goldman Sachs and Patria The Argentinian carrier is currently exploring
of fourteen banks currently involved in the Investimentos. One of the towercos suggested the possibility of deploying 4G LTE technology
injection of capital ahead of the Oi-PT merger. that Brazils carriers were soliciting bids to build following its unsuccessful attempt to win 3G
Other financial institutions such as Goldman about 3,900 towers, more than half the 6,680 new spectrum back in 2012, when the 800MHz and
Sachs, Banco Bradesco and Citigroup have also towers needed in 2014 to improve networks. 1900MHZ band auction was called off by the
been rumoured to be keen to get out of the deal. Argentinian government and frequencies assigned
Bloomberg go on to quote statistics attributed to to state-owned telecom operator Arsat.
Oi aims at raising between US$2.6bn and Brazil Tower Company, who say they build towers Argentina
US$3.5bn as part of its plan to merge with for 200,000 reais to 500,000 reais each, which Movistar and Claro Ecuador one step
Portugal Telecom. values the 3,900 to be built by third parties at closer to LTE
Brazil 780 million to 2 billion reais, according to data Ecuadors government has successfully completed
Oi-SBA 2,007 tower deal completed compiled by Bloomberg. Brazil Tower then expects the first phase of negotiations with Movistar and
to sell the sites in bulk for as much as $300,000 Claro Ecuador to award them LTE spectrum before
Oi and SBA Communications have concluded each. the end of 2014. A new round of negotiations is
their recent tower deal during the first week of likely to begin after the Easter break.
April with SBA acquiring 2,007 towers for US$ Intriguingly, Bloomberg report that the five
696 million. As part of the deal, Oi is entering a middle market towercos have capacity to Currently, CNT is the only carrier in Ecuador that
long-term leasing agreement with SBA. construct only 1,600 of the 3,900 towers between has been granted a license to offer LTE services.
them. Meanwhile SBA and GTS seem less keen Peru
The acquired portfolio has a tenancy ratio of on bidding for BTS opportunities under the Viettel to launch in Peru
1.6 per tower and features existing leasing contractual terms offered by their smaller
agreements with all major Brazilian carriers. competitors, hinting at a potential opportunity for TeleSemana quote Gonzalo Ruiz Diaz, head of
For further details of the transaction, check out further new entrant towercos. telecoms regulator Osiptel, as saying that Viettel
the interview with Kurt Bagwell, President USA will launch on 26 July having been held up with
International for SBA Communications, in issue 6 NII for sale? permitting for the installation of towers. Viettel
of the TowerXchange Journal. was awarded spectrum in the 1,900MHz band in
TMT Finance report that NII Group has appointed January 2011

Thailand
Asia News
True Corporation launches Telecom
Infrastructure Fund
Please forgive TowerXchange picking up on old
India
news but we werent covering Asia in late 2013
American Tower considers a bid for has appointed advisors to support a possible IPO. when, together with SCB Asset Management, True
VIOM Networks Bloomberg report that Carlyle Group and Axiata Group announced the formation of the TRUE
Encouraged by the success of the recent spectrum have entered bids for Viom Telecommunications Growth Infrastructure Fund
auction in India, and overdue consolidation in India
(TRUEGIF). True Group will transfer to TRUEGIF
the MNO category, American Tower is targeting TMT Finance raises possibility of sale of 6,000 telecom towers (of which 5,845 may be
to bid for Indias Viom Networks, which will help Ascend Telecom leased), a core fibre optic grid of 5,112 kilometers
it improve its services and lower its costs... AMT Always a good source for deal rumours, TMT and related transmission equipment, and 1,200,000
gained 10,000 towers in India with its previous two Finance report that another Indian towerco, Ascend ports in the broadband system located in provincial
purchases, with Viom it could go for consolidating Telecom which owns around 4,500 sites, has been areas of Thailand
its assets from all three purchases, consequently put up for sale. Ascend is jointly owned by New Silk Indonesia
lowering the operating cost, according to Seeking Route and TVS Interconnect Systems Balitower IPO surges on trading debut
Alpha. Indonesia
Shares in Bali Towerindo Sentra (Balitower)
Indosat, Axiata and Axis selling 7,500, surged in its trading debut on the Indonesian
Cellular News reports, without citing its source, that 8,000 and 1,600 towers respectively in stock exchange, raising approximately Rp35 billion
American Tower is thought to put a valuation on Indonesia (approximately US$3mn), helping fund the regional
Viom at around Rs 11,000 crore (US$1.77 billion), Having sold 2,500 towers to Tower Bersama in 2012, towercos expansion plans.
excluding debt, which is estimated at around Rs TMT Finance reports that Indosat is bringing a
7,200 crore. That figure is significantly below what second tranche of 7,500 towers to market. The IPO released 14.7% of Balitowers paid capital,
Vioms shareholders are understood to value the 88 million shares, priced at Rp400 (US$0.035),
company at though. TMT Finance continues to speculate that XL Axiata valuing the company at around US$20mn. Shares
will hive off around 8,000 towers which could be rose 50% to Rp600 on its March 14 debut, reaching
Viom Networks, a Tata Teleservices and SREI worth up to US$1.47bn. STP, Tower Bersama and a high of Rp1,455 rupiah a week later (US$0.13)
Infrastructure joint venture, owns a portfolio Protelindo are all apparently in the running for before trading was suspended.
of approximately 42,000 sites in India, boasting the portfolio. Were not sure how to marry this
a healthy tenancy ratio of around 2.3 with rumor with the launch of Axiatas towerco edotco, According to Balitower filings, the company made
over 95,000 tenancies from all the leading and their widely rumoured although unconfirmed a profit of Rp53 billion in the first nine months of
Indian operators. Tata Teleservices account launch in Indonesia. 2013.
for approximately 40% of Vioms revenues,
with tenancies from Bharti Airtel, Aircel, MTS, Meanwhile, the same publication suggests Tower In an interview on IDN Financials, Balitower
Vodafone, Idea, Uninor and BSNL among others. Bersama is closing in on a deal to acquire 1,600 President Director Jap Owen Ronadhi explained
Meanwhile, Hindu Business Line reports that Viom towers from Axis the companys growth plan: we plan to build more

Tower People
towers, expanding from currently 208 towers to 300-
350 towers. We focus 70% of our development in
the Badung Municipality, which is the tourism area
with high traffic. We will also build in Buleleng and
in Greater Bali. back to the HQ of Ceragon and resuming as COO.
Trevor Gordon will take over as regional head for
The IPO proceeds were about Rp35 billion, and our Africa, while Amit Ancikovsky heads up LatAm
total capex is Rp150-200 billion, funded by internal and Ram Prakash Tripathi is responsible for Asia.
cash, IPO proceeds and bank loans
All change at Telefonica, where COO Jose Maria
Asked how he saw the future of the tower industry Alvarez-Pallete takes operations in Europe
in Indonesia, Balitowers President Director added and LatAm; former head of LatAm Santiago
the merger of Axis and XL will automatically Fernandez Valbuena will become strategy chief
reduce the market, while the strength of the US and retain a place on the board. The reshuffle
dollar hampers operators expansion. However sees Spain, Brazil and UK CEOs, Luis Miguel
there is an increase in demand for capacity, for 3G Gilperez, Antonio Carlos Valente and Ronan
sites, and by the end of the year operators will start Dunne joining Telefonicas excom.
developing 4G LTE, which will expand our market.
Indonesia Millicom will appoint Tim Pennington as their
Mitratel tower sale remains a political new CFO in June 2014. Tim moves across from
hot potato holding the equivalent position at Cable &
Whether a stake in state-backed Telkom Indonesias Wireless Communications.
towerco Mitratel is sold, or whether the company
is listed, remains unlikely to be determined before Finally, the restructuring of Airtel Africa has led
Indonesias next elections. to the appointment of VG Somasekhar to lead a
Howard Earley, CEO, Inala
new business unit comprising of Zambia, Congo-
Mitratel owns an estimated 3,000 towers, and is Howard Earley has taken over as CEO of Inala. Brazzaville, Malawi, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad,
in the process of taking over 14,000 towers owned Howard is well known in the African tower Madagascar and Seychelles. Somasekhar had
by Telkomsel, a mobile phone operator in which industry as the former CFO and COO of blue-chip been MD of Airtel Uganda. Another business
Telkom has a 65% stake TI firm Plessey. Howard succeeds TowerXchange unit comprising Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Gabon,
Indonesia advisory board member Laurentius Human, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Rwanda will be led by
Indonesian towerco IBS plans rights issue outgoing CEO of Inala, who has crossed over to Christophe Soulet. The Nigeria and DRC business
Listed in 2012, PT Inti Bangun Sejahtera has the investment side of the business with Jabil. units will continue to be led by Segun Ogunsanya
announced plans for a rights issue of 208mn shares and Louis Lubala. All four business unit heads
at Rp500 per share Meanwhile John Earley (no relation!), is moving will report to Airtel Africa CEO Christian De Faria

Featuring a roundtable and a
panel on African towers
Meetup Americas 2014

May 20-22, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, Florida
Co-located with the PCIA Wireless Infrastructure Show
A unique, invitation-only gathering of the top 200 decision makers
in the Latin American tower industry
TowerXchange facilitates an open dialogue and shares knowledge between key stakeholders involved in the
transformation of the Latin American telecom tower industry. With carriers actively involved in upgrading their
network to meet growing demand for capacity and tower companies ever-increasing appetite to acquire towers,
the industry needs information, transparency and clarity.
The TowerXchange community unlocks priceless insights enabling you to evaluate opportunities across Latin
America for your business, through exclusive interviews, original research and live events.
Register online at http://www.towerxchange.com/apply-to-attend. Questions? Call Annabelle on +44 7423 512588

Gold Sponsor: Silver Sponsor: Bronze Sponsor: Co-located with:
Association Media Partners:

Partner: Created and hosted by:
Tower Xchange
TowerXchange Meetup Americas
Orlando, Florida | 20-22 May 2014
Day One | Tuesday 20 May Programme
From 8:00 Registration and coffee Country Manager, Costa Rica, Continental Towers multiple tenants, unlocking significant opex savings - Dr
< Country focus: Nigeria Inder Bajaj, CEO, Helios Michele Greca, VP and CEO, Ascot International
9:00 Welcome and opening remarks Towers Nigeria
Kieron Osmotherly, Founder and CEO, TowerXchange < Regional focus: Central America - Bill Bates, 3:00 Afternoon coffee and networking
Vice President - Business Development, SBA
9:10 The status of the Central and South American tower Communications 3:20 Strategic partners panel part I: the importance
industry and forecasts for the mid-term of partner selection for ROI optimisation and opex
Arianna Neri, Head of Americas, TowerXchange 12:20 Networking lunch reduction
Kieron Osmotherly, Founder and CEO, TowerXchange
1:40 Second structured networking roundtable: Moderator: Carlos Tilac, COO, Torrecom
9:30 Mobile network operator decision makers panel < Key tower manufacturing and design requirements
Jorge Paniza, CTO, Telefonica Costa Rica, Edgar for state of the art project development - Bhaskar Senior representatives from Mer Group Telecom
Geidans, Group CTO, Trilogy International, Eduardo Babu,Marketing Head - Telecom and Structures,Ganges Division, Ganges Internationale Private, SiteOne and
Ramirez Palomeque, Infrastructure Director, Iusacell Internationale Acsys will offer their perspective on key factors carriers
< Country focus: Myanmar -John Stevens, CEO, and towercos need to consider when selecting their
10:40 Morning coffee and networking Irrawaddy Green Towers contractors and suppliers
< Saving sharing as a service business model Pros and
11:00 First structured networking roundtables: Cons - Emmanuel Jakobson, Vice PresidentSales, AIO 3:40 Investors keynote panel
< Country focus: Brazil - Dr Chahram Zolfaghari, CEO, Systems Moderator: Marco Cordoni, Senior Partner, Analysys
Brazil TowerCompany < Regional focus: Africa - Chuck Green, CEO, Helios Mason
< Country focus: Mexico - William Ritchey, President, Towers Africa Mark Johnson, Managing Director, The Carlyle Group
IIMT < Opportunities for towercos to expand beyond the macro Ryan Lepene, Managing Director, Peppertree Capital
< Country focus: Chile - Ricardo Loor, COO, Torres networks into DAS and small cells - Csar Pea,Latin Zaid Alsikafi, Managing Director, Madison Dearborn
Unidas America Sales & Business Development Senior Director, Partners
< Country focus: Colombia - Eric Ensor, COO, Torres Mer Group Telecom Division
Andinas < Contractual terms that create and destroy value when 4:40 Closing remarks from day one
< Country focus: Ecuador - Yamil Franco, Americas negotiating sale and leaseback and BTS programmes -
Regional Manager, Leadcom Integrated Solutions Andres de Orleans Borbon, CFO, Helios Towers Africa 5:00 Close of day one
< Country focus: Costa Rica - Federico Lorenzana, < How to scale modular hybrid energy solutions for

TowerXchange Meetup Americas
Orlando, Florida | 20-22 May 2014
Day Two | Wednesday 21 May Programme
9:00 Opening remarks - Jonathan Adelstein, CEO, 11:10 Strategic partners panel part II: the importance of Terry Rhodes, Co-founder & Director, Eaton Towers
PCIA partner selection for ROI optimisation and opex reduction Nina Triantis, Managing Director, Global, Head of
Moderator: Carlos Tilac, COO, Torrecom Telecoms & Media, Standard Bank
9:05 Key challenges and lessons learnt from a Central Senior representatives from Leadcom, AIO Systems, HMS 2:30 Strategic partners panel part III: the importance
American carrier and towerco in South East Asia - an Industrial Networks, Telemisis and Metalogalva will offer of partner selection for ROI optimisation and opex
executive talk their perspective onkey factors carriers and towercos reduction
Pat Casey, Group HR Director, Digicel and Kieron need to consider when selecting their contractors and
Osmotherly, Founder and CEO, TowerXchange suppliers Moderator: Carlos Tilac, COO, Torrecom
9:30 Third structured networking roundtable: 11:30 Towerco keynote panel Part I Senior representatives from Ascot, ConnectM,Karam,
< How to survey, evaluate and upgrade towers for Moderator: Jonathan Atkin, Managing Director, RBC Sagemcom and Invendis will offer their perspectiveon
multiple tenants - Gal Barzilai, General Director, Capital Markets key factors carriers and towercos need to consider
Infracomex (Mer Telecom Mexico Subsidiary) Kurt Bagwell, President - International, SBA whenselecting their contractors and suppliers
< Site energy efficiency on single and multi-tenant Communications
sites- Bartek Stelmasiak Candell,Global Key Jim Eisenstein, Chairman & CEO, Grupo TorreSur 2:50 Afternoon coffee and networking
Account Manager - Telecom Infrastructure and Marc Ganzi, President, Digital Bridge Holdings &
Energy, HMS industrial Networks Mexico Tower Partners 3:10 Towerco keynote panel Part II
< How to raise capital for tower transactions - Dan Phil Kelley, SVP Corporate Development, Crown Castle Moderator: Jonathan Atkin, Managing Director, RBC
Lee, Managing Director, Intrepid Advisory Olivier Puech, CEO Latin America, American Tower Capital Markets
Partners Daniel Seiner, CEO, Torres Unidas Eric Ensor, COO, Torres Andinas
< Control and security issues of co-located sites: Jose Paz, CEO, Continental Towers
challenges and solutions- David Meganck, COO, 12:30 Networking lunch William Ritchey, President, IIMT
Acsys Maria A. Scotti, CEO, Torrecom
< Health and Safety principles in the tower industry 1:30 International focus: Africa keynote panel Dr Chahram Zolfaghari, CEO, Brazil Tower
- Todd Schlekeway, Executive Director, National Inder Bajaj, CEO, Helios Towers Nigeria Company
Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) Chuck Green, CEO, Helios Towers Africa
Daniel Lee, Managing Director, Intrepid Advisory 4:10 Summary and closing remarks from day two
10:50 Morning coffee and networking Partners

Confirmed speakers include:
14 Top Towercos under one roof at the TowerXchange Meetup Americas 2014
Jonathan Adelstein, CEO, PCIA Leadcom Integrated Solutions Jose Paz, CEO, Continental Towers
Jonathan Atkin, Managing Director, RBC Capital Marc Ganzi, President, Digital Bridge Holdings and Mexico Olivier Puech, CEO Latin America, American
Markets Tower Partners Tower
ZaidAlsikafi, Managing Director, Madison Edgar Geidans, Group CTO, Trilogy International Eduardo Ramirez Palomeque, Infrastructure
Dearborn Partners Chuck Green, CEO, Helios Towers Africa Director,Iusacell
Kurt Bagwell, President International, SBA Mark Johnson, Managing Director, The Carlyle Group Terry Rhodes, Co-founder & Director, Eaton
Communications Phil Kelley, SVP Corporate Development, Crown Castle Towers
Inder Bajaj, CEO, Helios Towers Nigeria Dan Lee, Managing Director, Intrepid Advisory Partners William Ritchey, President, IIMT
Bill Bates, Vice President Business Development, Ryan Lepene, Managing Director, Peppertree Capital Maria A. Scotti, CEO, Torrecom
SBA Communications Ricardo Loor, COO, Torres Unidas Todd Schlekeway, Executive Director, National
Pat Casey, Group Human Resources Director, Digicel Federico Lorenzana, Country Manager, Costa Rica, Association of Tower Erectors (NATE)
Marco Cordoni, Senior Partner, Analysys Mason Continental Towers Daniel Seiner, CEO, Torres Unidas
Andres de Orleans Borbon, CFO, Helios Towers Arianna Neri, Head of Americas, TowerXchange Carlos Tilac, COO, Torrecom
Africa Kieron Osmotherly, Founder & CEO, TowerXchange Nina Triantis, Managing Director, Global, Head of
Jim Eisenstein, Chairman & CEO, Grupo TorreSur Jorge Paniza, CTO, Telefonica Costa Rica Telecoms & Media, Standard Bank
Eric Ensor, COO, Torres Andinas David Porte, Vice President International, SBA Dr. Chahram Zolfaghari, CEO, Brazil Tower
Yamil Franco, Americas Regional Manager, Communications Company

Delegate List as on 9 May 2014
Accruent: Regional Vice President, Sales AT&T/Strategic Sourcing: Director FLEXENCLOSURE CEO
Accruent: Director, Product Management AuBren DAQS Europe: Managing Director FLEXENCLOSURE Sales Director Southern Africa
ACSYS: CEO and Founder azeti Networks AG Vice President, Sales Worldwide Fluidic Energy: President Latin America
ACSYS: Business Development Director azeti Networks AG Head of PreSales/Consulting Ganges Internationale: Head - Telecom & Structures
AIO Systems: VP Sales Barclays Capital: Managing Director Gemalto: Director of Business Development Sensor Logic
AIO Systems: VP Marketing Berkshire Partners: Managing Director M2M Platforms
AIO Systems: Director of Sales - Latin America Berkshire Partners: Advisory Director Gemalto: Product Marketing Director
AKCP: Vice President, Manufacturing BR Towers: Strategic/Financial/Comercial Planning General Communications, Inc.: Director
American Tower: Senior Strategic Implementation Lead Exceutive and M&A Globecomm: No job title given
American Tower: Director of New Products Brazil Tower: President Grupo TorresSur: Chief Development Officer and
American Tower Company: Chief Executive Officer - Bright House Networks: No job title given Corporate Secretary
Latin America C-Spire Wireless: No job title given Grupo TorresSur: Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
Anaysys Mason: Senior Partner Carmanah Technologies: Sales Manager - Obstruction GS Yuasa: Senior Director - Telecom and UPS
Apollo Solar: CEO CIG Wireless: CEO Helios Towers Africa: CFO
Ascot Industrial: Global Account Key Clients CIG Wireless: CFO Helios Towers Africa: Chief Executive Officer
Ascot Industrial: CEO Clean Power Systems: CEO Helios Towers Nigeria: Chief Technical Officer
AT&T: Area Manager, National Small Cell Business ConnectM: CEO Helios Towers Nigeria: CFO
Development ConnectM: COO Helios Towers Nigeria: Chief Executive Officer
AT&T: Advanced Technical Support Continental Towers Corp: Country Manager, Costa Rica Highline do Brasil: CEO
AT&T: Project Manager Continental Towers Corp: Chief Executive Officer Highline do Brasil: Director
AT&T: Notice to Proceed Manager Crown Castle: Director Tower Acquisitions HMS Industrial Networks Global Key Account Manager
AT&T: Central Region Account Manager Crown Castle: President and CEO HMS Industrial Networks Business Development
AT&T: No job title given Crown Castle: Senior Vice Principal Corporate Manager
AT&T: Area Manager Network Services RFME Development IIMT: Executive Vice President
AT&T: RFME Cummins Power Generation: Director - Telecom Inside Towers: Managing editor
AT&T: No job title given Business Inside Towers: No job title given
AT&T: Senior Manager Deltanode Solutions AB: Business Advisor Intelli Site Solutions, SAPI de CV: Co-CEO
AT&T: Sr. Technical Program Manager Deltanode Solutions AB: CEO Intelli Site Solutions, SAPI de CV: Co-CEO
AT&T Cleartalk: Project Manager Digicel: Group Human Resources Director Intelli Towers: Chief Executive Officer
AT&T Mobility: Manager Operations Eaton Towers: Co-Founder & Director Intelli Towers: Chief Technical Officer
AT&T Towers: SE Account Manager - DAS & Towers Eltek: President - Americas Region Intrepid Advisory Partners: Managing Director
AT&T Towers: National DAS Tenant Add Area Manager FairPoint Communications: Director Invendis: CEO
24 | TowerXchange Issue 8 | www.towerxchange.com www.towerxchange.com | TowerXchange Meetup | 11

Delegate List as on 9 May 2014
Irrawaddy Green Towers: CEO title given T-Mobile: Sr Manager DAS / SmallCell
Iusacell: Infrastructure Director National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE): T-Mobile: RF Engineer
Jefferies LLC: Analyst Executive Director Telefonica Costa Rica: CTO
KARAM - PN International: General Manager - PCIA: Chief Executive Officer Telefonica Ecuador: Gerente de Despliegue de Red
International Marketing Peppertree Capital: President Telemisis: Managing Director
Leadcom Integrated Solutions: Americas Regional Peppertree Capital: Managing Director Telemisis: Commercial Director
Manager Phoenix Tower Industrial: Vice President, Mergers & The Carlyle Group: Managing Director
Leadcom Integrated Solutions: Regional Manager Acquisitions Time Warner Cable Business Class: No job title given
Central America & Caribbean Phoenix Tower International: Chief Executive Officer Torrecom: Chief Executive Officer
Leadcom Integrated Solutions: CEO Pioneer Cellular: No job title given Torrecom: COO
M2M Spectrum Networks LLC: Senior Director Network Power-One: Product Manager Torres Andinas: Chief Operations Officer
Deployment Power-One: Distribution Sales Manager Torres Unidas: Chief Executive Officer
M2M Spectrum Networks LLC: SVP Network QMC Telecom do Brasil: President Torres Unidas: Chief Operations Officer
Implementation Ramboll: Head of Department Masts & Towers TowerCo: CEO
M2M Spectrum Networks LLC: Deputy Director Ramboll: Project Director Trilogy International: Group Chief Technology Officer
Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets Inc.: Vice RBC Capital Markets: Managing Director Trojan Battery: Director
President Sagemcom: Energy Solutions Manager Trojan Battery: Technical Advisor
Madison Dearborn Partners: Managing Director Sagemcom: Area Sales Manager US Cellular: Mgr. Strategic Sourcing
Media Venture Partners, LLC: Analyst SBA Communications: Director International Operations Verizon Wireless: No job title given
Mer Group Telecom Division: Latin America Sales & SBA Communications: Vice President, Business Verizon Wireless: Switch Tech
Business Development Senior Director Development Verizon Wireless: Site Acquisition Manager
Mer Group Telecom Division: General Director SBA Communications: President, International Verizon Wireless: Construction Purchasing Manager
Infracomex (Mer Telecom Mexico Subsidiary) Seccional Brasil: Chief Executive Officer Verizon Wireless: Site Acquisition Manager
Mer Group Telecom Division: General Manager SK Telecom, SK Planet: Board Member Verizon Wireless: Site Acquisition Coordinator
Infrastructure BU Sprint: Manager, Custom Network Engineering Verizon Wireless: Site Acquisition Manager
Metalogalva: Business Unit Manager - Telecom Sprint: Telecom Design Engineer Verizon Wireless: Site Acquisition Manager
Mexico Tower Partners: CEO Sprint: Project/Program Manager III Vinson & Elkins: Partner
Mexico Tower Partners: President Standard Bank: Managing Director, Global Head of Vinson & Elkins: Partner
Morgan Stanley: MD, TMT Telecoms & Media Wells Fargo Securities: Analyst
NAAP Global Solutions: VP Sales and Business Sunco Energy SL: Telecommunications Director Wells Fargo Securities: Associate
Development Tarantula: Executive Chairman Westchester Services L.L.C.: Director of Real Estate
National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE): No job T-Mobile: No job title given
2 | TowerXchange Meetup | www.towerxchange.com www.towerxchange.com | TowerXchange Issue 8 | 25

TowerXchanges unique structured networking round tables
TowerXchange roundtables bring together 8-10 representatives
of different segments of the tower industry ecosystem, brought
together by a common geographical focus or hot topic. There
are 3 roundtable sessions at the Meetup, each new roundtable
reshuffles the decision maker-level participants at your table so
you will meet several different prospective partners.
200 Director, VP and C-level Decision makers broken down

as follows:
Mobile Network Operators
Towercos
Investors and Investment Management Advisors
Lawyers and Strategic Consultants
Energy Equipment Providers
OEMs & Managed Service Providers
Static Assets, Access Control & Monitoring and Management

Meetup Americas Exhibition
70% SOLD
Overhead
Overhead Door Companies involved in the regional telecom tower industry have a
Door
Food & Drinks unique opportunity to be part of the most focused regional gathering
CS -S Service Desk
of the year and exhibit in the TowerXchange Latin American

Food & Drinks Food & Drinks
pavilion, placed at the very heart of PCIAs exhibition hall where 100+
international companies will showcase their solutions to the largest,
TowerXchange Pavillion
most qualified and concentrated audience of tower industry decision
130 131
Keegan
Wireless 331 430 431 530 531 630 Overhead
631 228 731 Door
230
makers in the world.
128 129 228 Connections 329 428 429 528 529 628 529 228 729
Cafe
327 426 427 526 527 626

126 127 226 527 226 727
Discuss your requirements today and find out all the available
Food & Drinks
options for your participation by contacting Annabelle Mayhew at
CS -S Service Desk
124 725
Small Cell Pavillion
C Squared Electro
amayhew@towerxchange.com or via phone at +44 (0) 7423 512 588.
Amirit
122 129 228 Systems 323 Technologies 522 523 622 -Wire 722 723
623
Galtronics 322 Wideband 423
221/223 CLC
Food & Drinks Foo

Shive- Antennas Slatercom CommScope TE Huada
120 127 226 Lodging Hattery 422/420 421 520 Connectivity 621 720 721
320 321 520/620
118
Contact us today to sponsor or exhibit at the TowerXchange
116 117 Eastpointe TUFTUG Dynamic
Enviromental TP Electric 617 716 717
Meetup Americas 2014.
216 217 517 616
Amphenol 20x20 20x20
316/314 BB&T TWR
Lattice EMSS
114 115 214 Atlantic Risk Lighting 714 715
213 C D 515 614 615
NATE
112 113 212 Product Showcase
713
Fidelity Henkles &

TestEquity Trans- National McCoy
PCTEL
110 111 210 American
211 308 710 711
511 610 611
Ericsson 20x20
Cellphone Ehresmann
Keegan
Tectonic HMS AIO Mer Group
ACSYS Azeti
tarantula Oldcastle OTL Solution
108 109 Mate Engineering
209 308 Telecom 609 708 709
Industrial
Systems Invendis Telecom
130 131
208
Wireless
A B 509/508
Networks Division
106
230 707 331 430 431 530 531 630
GME Terracon Sabre
105 Supply MaxCell Fibrebond MaxCell ITL, LLC
Communictaions
104 505 Industries 704 705

205 304 405 304
TowerXchange GS Yuasa
605
KGP 604
Telemisis Sagemcom
202/204
128
Mosaik Hughey &
129
Valmont Hughey &
228 Nello
Graybar Connections 428 429 528 529
SBA
102 103 Solutions Phillips

203 302
Site Pro 1 Phillips
403 302
Corp.
503 602 603
Cafe
Accruent
703
329 628
Valmont 3Z 700/702
Unimar AFL CDMI Deltanode
100 101 Structures CDMI 501 Telecom Skyhawk
701
200 201 300 401 401 300 600 601
Ganges
11 11 11 11 11 11 11
Int. KARAM Naap Leadcom Ascot Metalogalva
20 126 127 226 327 426 427 526 527 626
ENTRANCE
124 ENTRANCE

6 | TowerXchange Issue 8 | www.towerxchange.com C Squared Amirit
www.towerxchange.com | TowerXchange Issue 8 | 27 E
122 129 228 Systems 323 Technologies 522 523 622
Tower Industry Value Chain
How TowerXchange ensure an audience
of decision makers
Investors: private equity, debt finance, infrastructure funds
TowerXchange successfully launched its first live event
Investment management advisors Law firms for the emerging market telecom tower industry in
2013. Since then, we have gained a strong reputation for
Strategic consultancy Group level strategists delivering a high quality, meaningful platform for our
Independent Towercos Due diligence C-suite & network planners at local OpCos selected audience of tower professionals.
Sell co-locations Demand forecasts
Upgrade capacity Valuations
Build-to-suit
Mobile Network Operators The TowerXchange Meetup is exclusively for Director, VP
Transfer assets to and C-level decision makers. If registrants are substituted,
Maximise uptime
Some become
Reduce opex we will only accept replacement registrants of equal or

towerco
Invest in network Outsource

to greater seniority than those pre-approved.
Subcontract
Tier 1 OEMs Outsource Through our passive infrastructure focused journal
to
Subcontract publication and research, TowerXchange have cultivated
or in-house
Managed service providers relationships with 4200 (at time of press) decision makers
active in the Latin American tower industry, 85% of
whom are at Director, VP or C-level.
Construction services Static assets Monitoring & O&M services
Turnkey infrastructure rollout Towers & masts management Maintenance
By co-locating our event with the highly successful North
Manufacture of steelwork Shelters RMS Staffing
American PCIAs 2014 Wireless Infrastructure Show, we
Import, customs & delivery Brackets Intelligence/analysis Spare parts
will offer our audience a unique chance of exposure to
Leasing & permitting Enclosures Site management VMI?
Installation of towers Lighting Job ticketing Refueling the most mature tower industry in the world and its poll
Upgrades for capacity Fencing Asset lifecycle platform of top telecom professionals.
O&M services Energy as a service
Access control
Who will you meet
Dynamic assets
TowerXchange serves the Latin American tower

Energy equipment Batteries Air conditioning ESCOs community along two intersecting axes. On a
Diesel genset Rectifiers Lightning protection Microgeneration horizontal axis we facilitate relationships between
Solar Inverters Controller Community power
MNOs, towercos, investors and their advisers, aiding
Wind Line conditioning Voltage regulator
the structuring of deals and the transfer of assets.
Fuel cell PIUs
On a vertical axis, we examine the impact on, and
opportunities for, the passive infrastructure supply
chain, whether they sell to MNOs, towercos or
Backhaul, FTTT, Core Network Active equipment through OEMs.

What makes TowerXchange Meetups unique
Join the TowerXchange community at our exclusive executive retreat in Orlando where our unique, networking-driven unconference will facilitate tower
transaction deal-making, accelerate buyers partner selection due diligence, and provide passive infrastructure equipment and service providers with dozens of
highly qualified new prospects.
Decision makers only Dedicated to passive infrastructure An aid to shortlisting / receiving RFPs
Access to the TowerXchange Meetup is by invitation- While other events increasingly focus on devices and VAS, Strategic Partners Panels: dynamic panelsessions offering
only. Our 200 attendees are vetted for decision making TowerXchange maintains a laser-beam focus on passive an opportunity to key solution providersand king buyers
authority (Director, VP and C-level only), and the ratio of infrastructure to interact. A unique way to acceleratepartner selection
buyers to sellers is carefully managed due diligence and shortlist RFP recipients
How to advice from proven 28 guaranteed, qualified introductions Your trusted community host and
practitioners 4 structured networking sessions assemble participants commentator
The main TowerXchange Meetup is supplemented by in groups of 8, brought together by a common regional The TowerXchange Meetup draws on the credibility,
how to workshops, tackling topics from how to structure or topic matter interest, and arranged so each group original research and comprehensive relationships with
a tower transaction to the implications of 4G, while the includes 2 MNOs, a towerco, investor, advisor, OEM or Latin American telecoms infrastructure decision makers
business leaders from MNOs, towercos and investors will managed service provider, energy equipment and a static who read our renowned journal
debate hot topics in unmissable panel discussions asset or RMS manufacturer

The must-attend event for tower industry
decision makers
Attending, exhibiting or sponsoring our Meetup Americas represents a unique opportunity to be exposed
and interact with the entire value chain of Latin American tower professionals in addition to key
professionals from the leading North American tower market.
Our attendees will enjoy three days of knowledge sharing thanks to our closed-door, highly interactive
Meetup format, which will focus purely on the Latin American tower industry. At the same time, our
audience can experience the advantages of meeting and gathering with over 2000 attendees joining the
Wireless Infrastructure Show from all over the world in the networking and exhibition areas.
Respecting confidentiality yet revealing
whats really going on For our exhibitors, all booths are created equal at TowerXchange you wont be swallowed up into the
Tower transactions are highly confidential, so the shadow of the huge exhibits of deep-pocketed big brands at TowerXchange everyone gets the same size
TowerXchange Meetup is held under Chatham House turnkey booth, which means vendors are shortlisted to receive RFPs purely on the basis of their ability to
Rule and our unique roundtables, private meeting space meet buyer requirements. The
and informal receptions will enable you to discreetly TowerXchange Meetup has been TowerXchange: 100% passive
discuss and advance strategic partnerships infrastructure
designed to incur low logistics
costs theres no need to ship
anything to the event all the
Futurecom:
materials you will need will fit in 5% passive infrastructure
the hold of the plane you fly in on. TowerXchange
Passive
Infrastructure
Futurecom and Mobile World footprint
Congress are great events for
Mobile World Congress:
general networking, but they
1% passive infrastructure
increasingly focus on devices
and VAS, not towers and
passive infrastructure. The
Futurecom footprint
TowerXchange Meetup is 100%
Enjoy networking with 200 VIPs devoted to passive infrastructure.
Thanks to the co-location with US PCIA, our Meetup will Its 100% decision maker level: Devices & VAS footprint
be hosted at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida. only Director, VP and C-level are
Our ideal location is just a short distance to a variety of
permitted to attend. And our ratio Mobile World Congress footprint
Orlandos best attractions, restaurants, shopping and
entertainment venues and will be the perfect address for
of buyers to sellers is carefully
three days of intensive learning and networking. controlled.

PCIA Wireless Infrastructure Show
Job functions at The Wireless Infrastructure Show: Industry composition at The Wireless Infrastructure infrastructure ecosystem. Network within
Show:
the primary forum for infrastructure
3%
4% 10% owners and operators, carriers, investment
10% community representatives, government
28% 10% officials, equipment manufacturers and service
40% providers, and other integrally involved in
shaping the future of the industry. This market
defining Show features over 35 lectures,
30% 20% panels, round-tables, and special events on
a comprehensive selection of industry topics
17%
taught by leading industry experts.
8% 20%
The TowerXchange Pavilion is located on The
Wireless Infrastructure Show exhibition floor,
C-Level Consultant
Infrastructure Providers Financial
so you have access not just to our 18 Latin
Engineering/Technical Operations Legal Overhead Door
Investor/Financial Analyst Carriers Other America-focused exhibitors, but over 100
IT
Business Development Professional Services exhibitors showcasing all of the most relevant
Food development
infrastructure & Drinks tools, platforms
CS -S Service Desk
Your TowerXchange Meetup Americas registration includes a full access pass and services helping to drive the industry
Food & Drinks forward across North, Central and South Food &
to the co-located PCIA Wireless Infrastructure Show!
America!
TowerXchange have co-located our Latin that throughout the event you can choose to
American Meetup with the premier national attend sessions in the TowerXchange Meetup TowerXchange Pavillion
event for mobile network solutions-produced or you can visit The WirelessKeeganInfrastructure
for the industry, by the industry; The Wireless Show opening 130reception,131general and tracked
Wireless 331 430 431 530 531 630 631
230
Infrastructure Show, organised by the PCIA. sessions and keynotes.
128 129 228 Connections 329 428 429 528 529 628 529
Cafe
Your registration for the TowerXchange Meetup The Wireless Infrastructure Show attracts
126 127 226 327 426 427 526 527 626 527
Americas includes a full access pass to The more than 2,000 thought leaders and
Wireless Infrastructure Show, which means industry innovators
124 from across the wireless
C Squared Amirit Electro
10 | TowerXchange Issue 8 | www.towerxchange.com 122 129 228 Systems www.towerxchange.com
323 Technologies| 522
TowerXchange
523Issue622
8 | 31 -Wire
623
Our sponsors
Gold Sponsor: Silver Sponsor:
Acsys
Acsys is a global leader in tower access control

solutions. Our patented, military-grade solutions
based on our unique, programmable locks and
keys facilitate intelligent access control while
Site One avoiding the bottlenecks associated with wired
systems, including lengthy and expensive
SiteOne is an innovative Telecom site management solution based on a unique Intelligent installation, maintenance, external power
Site Management System to monitor and manage remotely distributed sites. By installing dependency, etc.
the azeti NG at the site to be monitored/controlled, you can continually watch over IP based
equipment and other operational technologies such as access control, energy consumption European-rooted, with an innovative team from
or environmental parameters. This combination provides a complete view of all the critical around the globe, and the benefits of China-
elements installed on the site, while allowing operators to not only monitor performance based production, Acsys stays at the forefront
in designing cutting-edge security and staff
but also to execute and program intelligent actions based on multiple scenarios. SiteOne
management solutions at a competitive price.
adresses some of the most common remote site issues including theft of equipment,
World unique solutions like our Code Generating
inefficient energy usage, unauthorized entry, HVAC control, lack of real-time data or general System are changing the face of tower access and
performance monitoring. are utilized by many of the industrys biggest
names.
www.azeti.net
www.acsys.com

Our sponsors
Silver Sponsor: Silver Sponsor: Bronze Sponsor:
Mer Group Telecom Division
Mer Group Telecom Division provides end-to-end Wireless

Infrastructure Turnkey Solutions from network planning,
site design and provision of towers, to site construction,
Gemalto ConnectM equipment installation, network optimization and
maintenance. Combining cost effectiveness, short lead times
Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO) is the world ConnectM is a leading, global Machine- and advanced engineering techniques, we are strongly
leader in digital security with 2013 annual revenues to-Machine (M2M) Technology Solutions, committed to client satisfaction. With a highly developed
of 2.4 billion and more than 12,000 employees Business Intelligence (BI) and Services logistics chain, advanced tower manufacturing facilities
operating out of 85 offices and 25 research and Company headquartered in Bangalore, India. and an extensive network of warehouses, our solutions are
software development centers, located in 44 flexible and scalable, providing measurable benefits for
countries. ConnectM Tower Remote Management customers. Our strong presence in Latin America enables
Solution (TRMS) is used at around 5000 us to leverage the combined in-depth regional knowledge of
In Machine-to-Machine (M2M), Gemaltos Cinterion Towers in India, 4500 Towers across 9 local partners with our industry acknowledged engineering
modules provide connectivity to millions of devices countries in Africa and in South East expertise for our customers benefit.
worldwide. Our SensorLogic M2M platform is a Asia. TRMS is used for cell tower passive
device-agnostic platform, making the integration infrastructure management that enables real The division leverages its proven global track record,
of diverse devices and software applications simple time monitoring of all the information from comprehensive knowledge and accumulated expertise to
and straightforward. SensorLogic provides data the remote sites and helps field operations seamlessly deliver technologically innovative and best-of-
management, device management, and application team to manage the assets efficiently. The breed solutions including M2M enablement and vertical
enablement for remote monitoring and control solution is designed to help global cellular market applications, mobile financial services, cloud billing,
solutions. Our solutions are trusted by MNOs and tower operators to achieve higher uptime MVNO enablement, as well as on/off board and remote/
governments around the world. with lower cost of operations. contactless payment solutions for public transport operators.
www.gemalto.com www.connectm.com www.mer-group.com/solutions/wireless-infrastructure

Our sponsors
Bronze Sponsor:
Bronze Sponsor: Bronze Sponsor:
AIO Systems HMS Industrial Networks Invendis
AIO Systems is a solution provider of next generation HMS Industrial Networks is the leading Invendis Technologies India Pvt. Ltd. started in 2007 with more
of remote management, monitoring and control independent supplier of products for than 100 years of experience in Telematics. Today, we are global
systems for critical unmanned sites. Offering industrial communication and remote leaders in the business of Remote Monitoring of Telecom Towers.
customized infrastructure management solutions, management. Products are marketed under
AIOs products are designed for telecom, power and the brands Anybus, IXXAT and Netbiter. Invendis designs and delivers technology-enabled business
water utilities, Oil & Gas industry, and others. Headquartered in Halmstad, Sweden, solutions helping Telcos & Towercos offer uninterrupted services
HMS is represented by branch offices in 10 to their clients. Invendis also provides a range of Remote
AIOs total site efficiency solution offer ~34% OPEX countries plus distributors in more than 50. Monitoring & Energy Optimization services by leveraging our
reduction to telecom tower operators by reducing HMS employs over 350 people and reported domain and business expertise.
power and diesel consumption, preventing theft and
sales of 60+ million EUR 2013.
loss of fuel and equipment, and allowing them to
Our offerings span front end equipments, sensors, transducers,
manage every asset and every tenant individually.
Telco site support equipment has become business applications, systems integration, product engineering,
smart, which offers the opportunity to have Installation, maintenance, 24X7 Global Monitoring & IT
Our unique controllers and peripheral devices
full remote control of all support equipment infrastructure services.
allow for a fully integrated remote site security,
on Radio and Core sites and benefit
which includes site surveillance and access control,
from reducing the OPEX without major Invendis pioneered customizable Front End Monitoring &
perimeter security, CCTV, active security elements
investments. With the Netbiter concept controlling equipments, which helped Towercos to roll out
and more.
we have developed a vendor independent Monitoring & Energy optimization solutions in shortest possible
AIO Systems manages a modular configuration fit for solution that fits into all kind of systems time.
the clients needs, in full automation, and providing and takes care of all hassles with different
timely alerts via a variety of communication communication protocols, different sizes of Invendis has a global footprint with over 25,000 installations
channels. diesel tanks, tampering etc. spread across Asia, Africa & Europe.
www.aiosystems.com www.hms.se www.invendis.com

Our sponsors Our exhibitors
Bronze Sponsor:
Vinson & ElkinsRLLP Ganges International Private Ltd. Telemisis Metalogalva
Vinson & Elkins is one of the oldest and largest GIPL (Ganges Internationale Pvt Ltd), Telemisis manufactures the SitePro TELECOM TOWERS MANUFACTURER
international law firms, with approximately started in 1991 manufactures and system for remote monitoring Quality products at fair prices. Company
supplies Tower for Telecommunications, and automation solution for all with 42 years experience. Young
700 lawyers located in 16 offices around the
Windmills, Power Transmission & business sectors; our specialisation and flexible team. 400 employees; 30
world.
Distribution and Railway Electrification. being mobile operators and engineers. 100 000 tons galvanizing
GIPL has a reputation for timely delivery, tower owners. We have delivered capacity (year). 14 welding and plasma
Our global telecommunications team
quality and total reliability of tower full site management systems, robots. 6.6M Investment on new
has extensive experience advising on supplies. GIPLs team of committed, including power optimisation, fuel equipments.
international telecoms and telecoms skilled and experience professionals will management, electricity metering, Qualifications:
infrastructure transactions. We have oversee the A-Z of your tower supplies. environmental management and <QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
extensive industry experience, advising on machine/equipment control in harsh ISO 9001<RDI MANAGEMENT
telecoms transactions in numerous countries. GIPL has a production capacity of 50,000 and demanding locations since 2000. SYSTEM CERTIFICATE NP 4457
Our telecommunications advice includes MTPA (Metric Tons Per Annum) and <ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
acquisitions and disposals, debt and equity galvanising capacity of 54,000 MTPA. Telemisis manufactures the SYSTEM ISO 14001 <MANAGEMENT
financing, infrastructure development, Expertise: industrys smallest, most flexible SYSTEM CERTIFICATE
operational arrangements, regulatory matters <Tower design, Manufacturing & Supply and cost-effective remote telemetry OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY
<100% own manufacturing for all node SiteNode. SiteNode OHSAS 18001 <SPECIAL CERTIFICATION
and dispute resolution.
products <ISO 9001: 2000 certified units provide interfacing and FOR GALVANIZATION for German Norm
<We provide all types of Towers data collection capabilities from DASt - GUIDELINE 022
We also have significant experience in the
Products: a wide range of standard devices Verification:
negotiation and drafting of sale and purchase, <Poles3m to 9m <Roof Top Towers9m and sensors that may already be <QUALIFICATION OFMANUFACTURES
debt and equity financing, master lease, build- to 30m <Ground Based Tower/Green deployed or will be added. Coupled TO WELD STEEL STRUCTURES
to-suit, site management and service level Field Tower 20m to 100m <Rapid with Telemisis back-end server according to DIN 18800-7 Level E <EC
arrangements; and have played a prominent Deployment Towers & Structures systems we offer standard or CERTIFICATE FACTORY PRODUCTION
role in complex fibre transactions. <Palisade Fences bespoke solutions. CONTROL (FPC) EN 1090 - 1/2 - EXC3
www.velaw.com www.gangesintl.com www.telemisis.com/products www.metalogalva.pt

Our exhibitors
Karam Sagemcom Ascot Leadcom
KARAM specializes in field of Fall Sagemcom is a French high- MODULAR & FLEXIBLE ENERGY Leadcom Integrated Solutions Ltd. is
Protection & manufactures the highest technology group with an SOLUTION designed for INDEPENDENT an international leading provider of
quality equipment, leading the way international dimension. TOWER OPERATORS, who enter in a telecommunication network and infrastructure
with innovative products & solutions Sagemcom concentrates expertise multi-tenancy agreement with different deployment services and solutions. We combine
for safe working at height. in telecom and energy solutions Operators extensive global experience, high level of
enabling the supply of customized engineering, project management and the
Our complete vertically integrated connected systems to utilities, ASCOT, leader in Hybrid Solution, has experience. Leadcom successfully performed
manufacturing set-up is spread over telecom operators and services studied and developed a modular & projects in all the Americas countries, our
a span of around 325,000 square feet operators worldwide. Flexible Solution designed to provide a current footprint is covering over 10 countries
area with work force of above 1500 smart and flexible power solution with in Americas, Leadcom can easily mobilize
highly skilled people. The Networks & Systems Minimum Initial Capex, in the same experienced resources to provide services in any
department offers highly efficient time, to be able to expanded gradually in given country.
KARAM provides a range of Solution to and innovative solutions for conjunction with the acquisition of the
the user working at Height on variety Energy & Site Monitoring, tenancy agreement Acting as a System Integrator, Turnkey Provider
of towers, masts, monopoles and lattice Green Energy production and Value Added Reseller, we provide a
structures that are used in Telecom & optimization, Radio Site The Modular DC-HPU is suitable to power comprehensive service offering aimed at major
industry. construction, Optical fiber from one to three BTS of up to 2KW, it has global and local telecom operators, towercos,
rollout, Telecom equipment and an engine capability of supplying power vendors and large enterprises. Our service offering
Our commitment to quality is associated services. up to three banks of batteries, so the main includes design, engineering, implementation of
reaffirmed by our ISO 9001-2008 change to accommodate multiple tenants mobile telecommunication infrastructure as well
certification. All our products are Sagemcom employs 4,200 people is to add extra battery stacks. We also as vendor-independent managed services provider
certified as per EN also meets American on five continents, with a revenue enable metering to bill each tenant for focusing on reliability, efficiency and OPEX
& other International standards. of around 1.3 billion euros their own energy consumption. reduction for our customers
www.karam.in www.sagemcom.com www.ascotinternational.com www.leadcom-is.com

Our exhibitors
Meetup Africa 2014

GS Yuasa
GS Yuasa is a Japanese company formed

in 2004 with the merger of two large 100
year old battery manufacturers, Japan
Monday October 20 - Tuesday October 21
Storage Battery and Yuasa. At US$3.2B Gallagher Convention Centre, Johannesburg
in sales, GS Yuasa is one of the worlds
largest battery manufacturers.
The return of TowerXchanges unique, invitation-only gathering of the
GS Yuasa manufactures a full line of top 250 decision makers in the African tower industry
technologies including lithium, lead
acid, nickel metal hydride, and nickel
With almost 40,000 African towers set for transfer from operator-captive to independent
cadmium for the automotive, industrial,
towercos, and over 25,000 African towers already owned or operated by towercos, there has never
and specialty battery markets. In North
been greater interest in African towers.
America GS BATTERY (U.S.A.) INC. is a
major supplier to the telecom industry.
The TowerXchange Meetup facilitates dialogues between operators, towercos, investors and
suppliers by using small group, round table sessions dedicated to key specific countries, or to key
With 36 affiliates in 16 countries,
financial and operational topics, enabling YOU to connect with the top 250 decision makers in
GS Yuasa has a worldwide presence
African towers.
operating under the GS Yuasa, GS, and
Yuasa brands.
www.gs-yuasa.com (GS YUASA) To discuss your participation, contact Annabelle on +44 7423 512588 or email
www.gsbattery.com (GS Battery USA) amayhew@towerxchange.com

Delegate Registration
TowerXchange Meetup Americas 2014, May 20-22, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, Florida
Your TowerXchange Meetup Americas registration includes a full access pass to the co-located PCIA Wireless Infrastructure Show!
Register at www.towerxchange.com/apply-to-attend or complete, scan and email this form to amayhew@towerxchange.com
Registration Details Company Name:
Delegate 1 Name: Delegate 1 Email:
Delegate 2 Name: Delegate 1 Email:
Tel:
Address:
PO Number:
Invoice address & payment contact (if different): Note that delegates must be Department Heads, Director, VP or C-level, unless special permission
is granted. Companies are also restricted to a maximum of 2 delegates unless sponsoring or unless
special permission is granted contact amayhew@towerxchange.com if you wish to apply for 3 or
more passes or for an exception to our Director, VP or C-level rule.
Payment per person PCIA Members PCIA Non-Members Special rates are available for full time employees of towercos, carriers,
Discount Codes government and regulators ONLY. Contact amayhew@towerxchange.com to
request a discount code.
Carriers Free Free
Package description: TowerXchange Subscription and Delegate Pass for
Government $1500 $1575 Meetup Americas 2014. Package includes daytime catering, participation in 3
Package Description
round table sessions, after hours networking receptions. Package does NOT
Investors $1500 $1575 include accommodation or evening meals.
Towercos $1500 $1575
Vendors $3000 $3150 Discount Code:
Payment terms: Within 14 days of receipt of invoice, or in advance of the event, whichever comes first. The following terms and conditions apply:
< Site Seven Media reserves the right to refuse admission to the event
For BACS payment, please remit to: For IBAN payment, please remit to: if full payment of the Registration Fee has not been received.
Site Seven Media Ltd Site Seven Media Ltd < In the event of the Site Seven Media cancelling the TowerXchange
Bank name: Lloyds TSB Bank name: Lloyds TSB Meetup Americas 2014, the parties agree that Site Seven Media
Sort code: 30-90-89 Swift /BIC: LOYDGB21256
will offer to transfer the registrants attendance of the Event to
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an acceptable alternative event. If Site Seven Media cannot offer an
acceptable event, we will refund the Registration Fee to the Client
in full.
< Substitution policy: you may substitute subscribers registered
delegates for colleagues, as long as alternate attendees are also
Department Heads, Director, VP or C-level Regrettably no
I agree to the terms of this registration Date
cancellations can be accepted.
An introduction to towerco We are delighted to be contributing to
TowerXchange, and the emerging market tower
industry in general, through a series of articles
business models and tower where we, EY, will share insights gained from
our experience on transacting in towers and
transactions particularly in Africa.
EY define the three types of towerco business model The first article in the series is intended to be a
Tower transactions 101, focusing on the current
At EY, we continue to be at the forefront of transactions in the towerco business models in the market, types
African tower market, successfully completing nine deals on the of transactions, towerco economics as well as
continent to date and advising on a host of others. We provide our outlining a glossary of terms and KPIs commonly
clients the full range of advisory services to ensure a successful used in the industry. Subsequent articles will
transaction from lead M&A advice to commercial, financial cover areas such as data preparation, diligence,
and tax due diligence and tax structuring. Our core telecom commercial considerations, valuation approaches,
infrastructure team is based in the UK, drawing on an extensive structuring transactions, exit considerations and
and specialised network of offices in 33 African countries with our views on the future of infrastructure sharing.
5,500 professionals to ensure that we provide our clients with the
best advice possible. Towerco business models
Broadly speaking there are three types of business
models for a towerco, which differ in value
Keywords: How to Guide, Towercos, Managed Services,
proposition to the towerco, and thus impact the
Strategic Consultancy, Deal Structure, EBITDA, Tower Cash
entire investment cycle we are currently seeing in
Flow, Rental Rates, Valuation, Due Diligence, Opex Reduction,
the market. Our commentary excludes the building
Tenancy Ratios, Co-locations, Build-to-Suit, Business Model,
Site Level Profitability, KPIs, Sale & Leaseback, Operational of sites on behalf of an MNO when there is no
Justin Prichard, Director - Lead Advisory, Lease,Africa,Infrastructure Sharing,Ernst & Young ongoing role post construction as a towerco model,
Transaction Advisory Services, EY as this essentially represents a pure construction
activity rather than a true towerco business
Read this article to learn: model.
< The three types of towerco business models and two types of sale and leaseback transaction structure
< The natural limits on per tower valuations and leaseback rates The first model involves managing and
< The economics of a single site maintaining tower sites for an MNO, referred
< How towercos create value through co-location sales and energy opex reduction to as Managed Services. Under this model the
< A glossary of tower industry terms and KPIs towerco has no ownership in the underlying site
and generally provides services on a simple cost-

plus arrangement. There are ways to structure Figure 1: Overview of EY presence in Africa
these agreements to incentivise the towerco to
reduce costs, for example the MNO sharing the
savings benefit with the towerco, but the Managed
Services model is primarily used in markets where
operations can be difficult and MNOs would prefer
to outsource operations even if costs are slightly
higher.
The second model is referred to as a Management

and Marketing model, which has its roots in the
Managed Services model but, where the towerco
has the right to market the sites to other MNOs
and receive all or part of the co-location revenues
generated from such additional tenants. The larger
the number of co-locators, and the larger the share
of the co-location revenues the towerco receives,
the greater the value proposition to the towerco
and, thus, the larger cash savings a towerco is
able to offer to an MNO. Under this model, there
is no transfer of ownership of the sites and hence
a towerco does not pay for the site. However it is
common for there to be a commitment to invest
in the passive network, such as the site power
solution.
The third and most common model is the Own them on a significant number of sites, and as such infrastructure investor point of view (and therefore
and Operate model, whereby the towerco owns it is common for towercos to start by building generally delivers the most value to an MNO via a
all (or part) of the infrastructure on a site and the infrastructure in a particular market before sale and leaseback transaction).
leases space on it to an MNO. The towerco either growing through acquisition.
builds the infrastructure for, or acquires it from, In Africa, the most common infrastructure sold
an MNO in a sale and lease back transaction. To provide a fuller understanding we focus on the by MNOs in tower transactions is termed passive
Towercos will generally require a track record Own and Operate towerco business model because infrastructure, and represents the land (or land
of operations before an MNO will be confident to it is both the most common business model in the lease), the tower / mast, power solution and the
enter into a sale and leaseback transaction with market and creates the most value from a towerco / bricks and mortar present on the site. An MNO

will retain ownership of its active infrastructure, a loss. Conversely, if the lease back is materially
Figure 2: Single site economics - African being the antenna, BTS / node B, BSC / RNC and the higher than the MNOs total cost of ownership
Own and Operate Towerco model
connection to the backhaul /core network. (TCO) of running the site there is a danger that the
Antenna transaction will be viewed as a financial instrument
In a typical tower sale and leaseback transaction, impacting the MNOs existing debt and therefore
Tower/ the MNO will sell its passive infrastructure its covenants and gearing. Working within these
Mast BTS/Node B (transferring responsibility of the relevant expenses boundaries, it is understandable that MNOs do not
Power
BSC/RNC
solution and maintenance capex to the towerco) and agree to want a tower transaction to be materially dilutive
Land a lease back rate, or use fee, for the space on the site from a future EBITDA / cash flow perspective. As
that its active equipment occupies. The two most such, the desired lease back rate tends to be the
important (inter-related) parameters of any sale and same or less than the operating expenses / TCO per
leaseback transaction are therefore: (i) the value site.
Backhaul to
Key: core network paid by the towerco to the MNO for the site; and (ii)
Towerco owned (via fibre or the lease back rate paid by the MNO to the towerco What does this mean for towercos?
MNO owned/shared microwave)
- the higher the leaseback rate paid by the MNO, On day 1 of a sale and leaseback transaction, the
Single Multiple the higher the value of the site. Therefore, seeking net cashflow generated on a per site basis can
Single site economics - example
tenancy tenants
to compare sale and leaseback transactions when be zero or negative unless there is a significant
Revenue only one of these parameters is known (usually number (and value) of existing co-location tenants
site value) is not particularly meaningful, and is on the portfolio of sites. Consequently, to deliver
Tenant(s) MNO, WIMAX, Broadcast etc
the reason why we see such a range of per tower the returns required by investors, and priced into
Expenses valuations in sale and leaseback transactions. the business plans underpinning the offers made in
This relationship has led to two types of sale and the sale and leaseback transactions, towercos will
Power diesel
leaseback transactions. The first being where the need to focus their time on: (1) increasing revenue
Power electricity MNO sets a lease back rate and bidders offer as through additional tenants; and (2) reducing
Ground rent high a valuation as possible, with the second being expenses (primarily power). This is why you see so
where the MNO sets the value it wants to raise and much emphasis placed on understanding future
Security
bidders offer as low a lease back rate as possible. demand for sites (driven by increasing mobile
Operations & Maintenance Some transactions in the past have not specified penetration and technology changes particularly)
Insurance either but this leads to difficulty in comparing bids and alternative solutions to the diesel generators
and is now less common. that currently power so many African mobile sites.
EBITDA
Maintenance capex There are, however, natural limits to both the In our subsequent articles we will dive deeper
per tower value and lease back rate in tower into transacting in towers to provide more insight
Tower cash flow
transactions, with MNOs generally reluctant to for MNOs, towercos, investors, advisors and other
Positive cash flow Negative cash flow Note: before any overhead costs
sell below book value to avoid the need to record stakeholders in the industry

Glossary of terms / KPIs
Term Description / Definition
Active infrastructure The antenna, BTS / node B, BSC / RNC, and the connection to the backhaul / core network
Augmentation capex The capitalised costs associated with adding an additional tenant to a site, most commonly relates to site strengthening, one-off in
nature, commonly quoted on a per site basis
BSC Base Station Controller, GSM network, responsible for assigning frequencies to each call
BTS Base Transceiver Station, GSM Network, facilitates communication between the antenna and the network, alternatively use to represent
Build to suit (see below)
Build to suit (BTS/B2S) Sites built and owned by a towerco (as opposed to being purchased from an MNO), generally higher value sites because they are built for
purpose by the towerco to accommodate multiple tenants (specification and location)
Co-location The addition of a tenant(s) to a site
EBITDA Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation

GBT Ground based tower, represents the most well-known type of site
Lease back rate The monthly fee paid by the anchor tenant for space on a tower sold to and leased back from a towerco, generally the same or less than
the operating expenses / TCO per site
Lease up rate (LUR) The ratio of tenants to number of sites, generally does not discriminate between the type of tenant (MNO, WIMAX etc.) or level of use fee,
same as tenancy ratio
Maintenance capex The capitalised costs associated with maintaining the passive infrastructure of a site, most commonly relates to generator refurbishment
or replacement, ongoing and lumpy in nature, commonly quoted on a per month per site basis
Managed Services Towerco business model where the towerco has no ownership in the underlying site and generally provides such a service on a simple
cost-plus arrangement
Management and Towerco business model where the towerco has no ownership in the underlying site but has the right to market space on the site to
Marketing additional tenants and retain all or a proportion of the use fee paid by those tenants
MNO Mobile Network Operator
Node B Similar to BTS, 3G network, facilitates communication between the antenna and the network
Own and Operate Towerco business model where the towerco owns all (or part) of the infrastructure on a site and leases space on it to an MNO. The
towerco either builds the infrastructure for, or acquires it from, an MNO in a sale and lease back transaction
P&L Profit & Loss Statement

Glossary of terms / KPIs
Term Description / Definition
Passive infrastructure The land (or land lease), tower / mast, power solution and the bricks and mortar present on the site
Refurbishment capex The capitalised costs associated with upgrading the quality of passive infrastructure, most commonly relates to upgrading the power solution, one-off in
nature, commonly quoted on a per site basis
RNC Radio Network Controller, 3G network, responsible for assigning frequencies to each call
Rooftop site Site where the active equipment is attached to a building as opposed to a traditional GBT, common in urban areas
Sale and leaseback Transaction in which the towerco acquires all (or part) of the infrastructure from an MNO. The two most important (inter-related) parameters of any sale
and leaseback transaction are: (i) the value paid by the towerco to the MNO for the site; and (ii) the lease back rate paid by the MNO to the towerco
TCO Total cost of ownership, refers to the operating expenses and maintenance capex of the passive network assets, commonly quoted on a per month per site
basis
Tenancy ratio The ratio of tenants to number of sites, generally does not discriminate between the type of tenant (MNO, WIMAX etc.) or level of use fee, same as lease up
rate (LUR)
Tenant Pays a use fee to occupy space on the passive infrastructure of a site, generally does not discriminate between the type of tenant (MNO, WIMAX etc.) or
level of use fee
Tower The physical mast that supports antennae at a site, commonly refers to all the passive infrastructure on a site in the industry
Tower Cash Flow (TCF) EBITDA less maintenance capex
Towerco Company that owns and/or maintains all or part of the passive and/or active infrastructure of a MNOs network
Use fee Payment made by a tenant to occupy space on the passive infrastructure of a site, commonly quoted on a per month per site basis. Same as lease rate
EY | Assurance | Tax | Transactions | Advisory we play a critical role in building a better working For more information about our organization, please
world for our people, for our clients and for our visit ey.com.
About EY communities.
Information in this publication is intended to provide
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Italian tower market
There is no surprise in the announced Italian
tower sales. Capital requirements of LTE rollout
have stimulated tower sales Europe-wide.
emerges from stasis Notable recent transactions include those of

Bouygues in France, E-Plus in Germany and
Significant transactions in prospect Telefonica in Spain. T-Mobile is planning the sale
of Austrian towers. The UK and France feature
vibrant independent sectors.
A forthcoming sale of Telecom Italia towers will be the most
significant such transaction in Europe in 2014. The acquirer Simultaneous sale of two tower portfolios, as
will become the largest independent towerco in Italy. Italian in prospect in Italy, is unusual. This is because
operator WIND, a subsidiary of the Russian Vimpelcom, is simultaneous sales have a probable effect of
also considering a tower sale. If both of these initiatives depressing valuations. Set against this is the
come to fruition, the coming 12 months will thus see either fact that Italian mobile usage is high as against
two competing independent towercos, each with a strong European norms. Pressures on Italian operators
base of secure revenues, or, alternatively, a single towerco to raise cash in order to fund deployment of LTE
that will dominate the market and become a significant are correspondingly high.
international force. Conor Plant of consultancy Hardiman
Conor Plant, Managing Consultant, Telecommunications Ltd. reviews the Italian vista and the There is considerable overlap of coverage by
Hardiman Telecommunications prospects for success. the various Italian operators. Tower sharing has
to date has been implemented on 20% of sites
only. Considered from a towerco perspective,
Keywords: Lawyers & Advisors, Strategic Consultancy, Market Overview, 4G, Business Case,
this presents opportunity for consolidation
Densification, Country Risk, Rooftop, Sales & Leaseback, Infrastructure Sharing, Europe, Italy, France,
Austria, Spain, Russia, Telecom Italia, WIND, Vimpelcom, Bouygues, E-Plus, Telefonica, T-Mobile, 3 Italia, and optimisation, thereby achieving efficient
Hardiman Telecommunications operation, economic deployment of capex and
correspondingly lowered opex.
Read this article to learn: Tower portfolios are typically sold with
< The impact of the forthcoming sale of 10,000 Telecom Italia towers for a wave of tower transactions in contracted revenue for up to ten years post-sale.
Italy and across Europe Base-line revenues are thus secured. At this
< Progress of LTE deployment in Italy time, opportunities for revenue increase present
< Coverage overlap and tower sharing to date in Italy in that LTE cell sizes, for capacity reasons, are
< The continued performance of the Italian mobile sector against the downturn typically smaller than those of GSM and 3G. This
< Why this tower sale is likely to attract than a previous attempt to sell 18,000 Italian towers in 2007 results in increased demand for antenna and
base station hosting. DTT deployments may also

provide additional revenue opportunities. considerably in advance of demand. Demand for
high speed data communications, as evidenced
All Italian MNOs have committed to rolling by the phenomenal growth of social websites and
out LTE. TIMs LTE currently covers 37% of the streaming applications, is now clearly in advance
national population. This will be extended to of investment. LTE will meet this demand.
60% over the coming year. The requirement The opportunities in the Italian
for LTE sites runs to 7,000. Vodafone and 3 A further positive factor is investor comfort
tower sector are clear. The
Italia are also actively rolling out, and WIND with tower transactions in general and with
will commence shortly. Replication of LTE current replication of tower business models and plans of independent tower
rollout, in the sense of construction of similar coverage is inefficient. Operators operators in particular. While not unknown
sites by all operators, would be wasteful and need to liberate capital. as of 2007, independent tower initiatives have
inefficient. It is unlikely. It may be noted that
the TIM portfolio, which runs to 10,000 towers,
features a significant number of urban rooftop
sites. These are in premium demand for LTE
deployment. LTE, in urban implementations,
requires small cell sizes and low-placed rooftop
Consolidation will bring clear

opex efficiencies. Infrastructure
sharing will accelerate rollout of
LTE. Significant investor interest
may be expected
been significantly proven in the intervening
years. Towercos, as business propositions, have
transited from being perceived as novel, and
possibly interesting, to become, as of now, well-
recognised as mainstream telecommunications
initiatives, and amenable to analysis according to
antennae. established KPIs.
The logic underpinning consolidation in the The opportunities in the Italian tower sector are
Italian tower sector is compelling. Nevertheless, clear. The current replication of tower coverage
it should be underlined that success is not financial stability and corresponding investor is inefficient. Operators need to liberate capital.
assured. A proposed joint sale of towers by 3 confidence is certainly evident. We have noted Consolidation will bring clear opex efficiencies.
Italia and WIND failed to find buyer in 2007. The that Italian mobile usage is high by international Infrastructure sharing will accelerate rollout
promoters of the initiative - which encompassed comparison. The mobile sector, while not of LTE. Significant investor interest may be
18,000 towers - held that market conditions were entirely invariant against underlying economic expected
not conducive to achieving the desired price. conditions, continued to perform during the
This raises the matter of reasons why market downturn. It is also the case that the seven years Conor Plant (plant@telecoms.net) is a Managing
conditions are indeed conducive to success at this since the unsuccessful initiative by 3 Italia and Consultant with Hardiman Telecommunications
time. WIND have seen emergence of confidence and Ltd. (http://www.telecoms.net), a boutique
robust planning against LTE. As of 2007, LTE, consultancy with offices in London and Hong
It is to state the obvious that significant questions while in prospect, had not yet been subjected to Kong. Hardiman Telecommunications Ltd.
overhang the medium-term prospects of the rigorous business analysis. Operators were still advises operators, towercos, investment banks
Italian economy. Nevertheless, as a general wary of possible repetition of the experiences and PE funds on strategy, operations and M&A.
matter of international TMT investing, return of of 3G rollout, when investment was made

Special feature:
TowerXchanges analysis of
the LatAm tower industry LatAm towerco breakdown by country
AMT Andinas Continental Innovatell QMC SBA Torrecom Unidas

In preparation of the TowerXchange Meetup Americas, we have assembled
Brazil Brazil Brazil Brazil
an initial analysis of the Latin American tower market based on our ongoing
research and valuable inputs from the industry. The analysis shows the Mexico Mexico Mexico
great potential of the regional tower industry and its growth pattern over the
Columbia Columbia Columbia
course of the past few years while highlighting some of the key challenges to
overcome in order to maximise the return for towercos, investors and tenants Chile Chile Chile
alike.
Peru Peru Peru Peru
The demand for a new regulatory framework for the tower industry is a top Costa Rica Costa Rica Costa Rica
priority for countries like Brazil and Mexico in order to ensure independent
Panama Panama Panama
towercos can add the maximum value to each local market. Simplified and
clear telecom laws will contribute to the proliferation of greenfield projects - a Nicaragua Nicaragua Nicaragua
priority in order to meet ambitious coverage and capacity demands.
Guatemala Guatemala Guatemala
We are reporting on rumours suggesting that as many as 20,000 towers could El Salvador El Salvador
be on sale in Brazil alone, which could definitely turn Q3 and Q4 2014 into the Jamaica
most interesting season for the regional tower industry to date. In the next few
pages, we are offering a Meetup preview, an in-depth analysis of the Brazilian Honduras
tower sector co-authored with Analysys Mason as well as an overview of the Ecuador Ecuador
Argentinian telecom sector by Planex Technologies.
Dont miss: Towercos focusing on a single country

48 TowerXchange Meetup Americas preview
Brazil: GTS, BR Towers, Highline, CSS, T4U, Brazil Tower Company
50 Editorial: An introduction to the Latin American telecom tower industry
Mexico: MTP, IIMT
55 Analysys Mason and TowerXchange: Seeking value in the Brazilian
Panama: Torres de Panama
towers market
Dom. Rep: Teletower Dominicana
57 Planex on the Argentinian tower industry

TowerXchange Meetup Americas preview
The time has come for the gathering of the year of LatAm telecom tower executives
Meetup Americas 2014 Featuring roundtables on Myanmar and

Africa and an African tower panel session
May 20-22, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, Florida

Co-located with the PCIA Wireless Infrastructure Show
With just over a week to go before the doors of the first TowerXchange Meetup Americas open, here is a snapshot of what
our attendees can expect from the only LatAm focused event of the year for telecom tower professionals.
Who you will meet | 200+ Reasons to attend
Major tower companies, carriers, investors and solution providers have all confirmed attendance and we expect 200 C and
D level participants at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida.
Acsys, CEO | American Tower, CEO, Latin America | Berkshire Partners, Managing Director | Brazil Tower Company, Co-President | Clean Power Systems,
Managing Director | ConnectM Technology Solutions, CEO | Continental Towers Corp, CEO | Continental Towers Corp, Country Manager - Costa Rica | Crown
Castle, President and CEO | Deltanode, CEO |Digicel, Group HR Director | Digital Bridge Holdings, CEO | Eaton Towers, Co-founder and Director | Eltek,
Americas Regional President | Entel, Head of Projects | Everest Engenharia, Vice President, Strategies | Grupo TorreSur, Chairman and CEO | Grupo TorreSur,
Chief Development Officer and Corporate Secretary | Helios Towers Africa, CEO | Helios Towers Africa, CFO | Helios Towers Nigeria, CEO | Highline do Brasil,
President and Managing Partner | IIMT, Executive Vice-President| Intelli Towers, CEO | Invendis, CEO Iusacell, Infrastructure Director | Leadcom Integrated
Solutions, CEO | Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets, Vice President | Madison Dearborn Partners, Managing Director | MER Group, CEO | Mexico Tower
Partners, CEO | Morgan Stanley, Managing Director| Peppertree Capital, President | Peppertree Capital, Managing Director | Phoenix Tower International,
CEO | QMC Telecom, President | SBA Communications, President - International | SBA Communications, Vice-President, Business Development | Seccional
Brasil, CEO | SK Telecom, Board Member | Standard Bank, Managing Director, Global Head of Telecoms & Media | T-Mobile, Senior Manager DAS and Small
Cell | Telefonica Costa Rica, CTO | Telefonica Ecuador, Network Rollout Director | The Carlyle Group, Managing Director | Torrecom, CEO | Torrecom, COO |
Torres Andinas, COO | Torres Unidas, CEO | TowerCo, CEO | Trilogy International Partners, Group CTO | Wells Fargo Securities, Managing Director

The TowerXchange Pavillion at the very heart
of the PCIA Wireless Infrastructure Show
Overhead
Overhead Door Door
Food & Drinks
CS -S Service Desk
Food & Drinks Food & Drinks
Keegan
130 131 Wireless 331 430 431 530 531 630 631 228 731
230
128 129 228 Connections 329 428 429 528 529 628 529 228 729
Cafe
126 127 226 327 426 427 526 527 626 527 226 727
124 725
Towerxchange Meetup Americas | A business trip

C Squared Amirit Electro
122 129 228 Systems 323 Technologies 522 523 622 -Wire 722 723
623
you CANNOT miss

221/223 CLC Shive- Antennas Slatercom CommScope TE Huada
120 127 226 Lodging Hattery 422/420 421 520 Connectivity 621 720 721
320 321 520/620
118
20+ hours of interaction Eastpointe TUFTUG Dynamic

116 117 Enviromental TP Electric 617 716 717
216 217 517 616
Amphenol 20x20 20x20
316/314
The Meetup is specifically designed to ensure interactivity and networking Lattice BB&T TWR
115 214 EMSS
114 213
Atlantic Risk
614
Lighting 714 715
C D 515 615
throughout. Our Panel Sessions and Roundtables are tailored to allow all attendees to 112 113 212 Product Showcase NATE
713
exchange views, discuss key challenges faced by the industry and create meaningful 110 111 210
TestEquity Trans-
American
211 308
Fidelity Henkles &
National McCoy
PCTEL
611
710 711
511 610
Ericsson 20x20
business relationships beyond the Meetup. 108 109
Cellphone Ehresmann
Mate Engineering
209
tarantula
308
Tectonic
Telecom
Oldcastle
609
OTL Solution
708 709
208 A B 509/508
A closed door, executive retreat 106 707
Join the TowerXchange Meetup Today

GME Terracon Sabre
Supply MaxCell Fibrebond MaxCell
We have carefully managed the ratio of sellers and buyers as well as the seniority of 105 ITL, LLC
Communictaions
104 505 Industries 704 705
KGP 205 304 405 304 604 605
202/204 Mosaik Hughey & Valmont Hughey & Nello
our attendees. You will be exposed to a crowd of 200 C and D level experts with decision Graybar
SBA
102 103 Solutions Phillips Site Pro 1 Phillips Corp.
602 603 703
203 302 403 302 503 Accruent
If you havent registered yet, there are stillDeltanode
Valmont a few 3Z tickets available
700/702
to
making and budgetary power. 100 101 Unimar
200
AFL CDMI
201 300 401
Structures CDMI
401 300
501 Telecom
600
Skyhawk
601 701
join us in Orlando, 20-22 May 2014. Please contact us immediately

11 11 11 11 11 11 11
International exposure to
20book your place at the most targeted event of the year for
The TowerXchange Meetup Americas is co-located with the PCIA Wireless Infrastructure professionals involved in the transformation of the Latin American
Show, allowing our attendees to meet 2,000+ experts from the North American telecom telecom tower industry. ENTRANCE ENTRANCE
tower industry and beyond.

For programme enquiries, To book your place, please
A business-friendly environment please contact: contact:
Tower transactions are highly confidential, so the TowerXchange Meetup is held under Arianna Neri Annabelle Mayhew
Chatham House Rule and our unique roundtables, private meeting space and informal Head of Americas Chief Commercial Officer
receptions will enable you to discreetly discuss and advance strategic partnerships. E. aneri@towerxchange.com E. amyhew@towerxchange.com
M. +39 338 111 2103 M. +44 (0) 7423 512 588

An introduction to the Latin
With 1,666 towers divested, Mexico experienced
yet another interesting year in terms of
transactions while international media continue
American telecom tower industry to speculate about imminent changes to the

national telecom regulatory framework.
A summary of findings from the past few months of research as developed
by TowerXchange Although absent from the sale and leaseback
market, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador are
other countries we are keeping an eye on thanks
2013 was an exciting year for the Latin American telecom
to their push towards 4G LTE which might prompt
tower industry, with 14,035 towers divested, more than
a new wave of tower transactions in the upcoming
double the previous year. With 12,369 towers sold in Brazil
months. Build-to-suit and middle-market towercos
alone, the country placed itself at the very heart of the
are active in all four countries, as well as some of
transformation of the tower industry, also thanks to the
LatAms larger towercos.
push provided by upcoming events such as the 2014 World
Cup and 2015 Summer Olympics.
Central America and the Caribbean could be the
next targets for international towercos seeking to
Keywords: Central America, South America,
expand their regional footprint. Some markets,
Caribbean, Chile, Peru, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia,
such as Panama and Puerto Rico, feature many
Ecuador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Transactions,
independent towers and local towercos. Others
Towercos, American Tower, SBA Communications,
remain greenfield markets with promising
Grupo TorreSur, BR Towers, Build-to-Suit, Torrecom,
Continental Towers, Torres Andinas, CSS, QMC
macros, but lacking scale.
Telecom, Tenancy Ratio, Premium, MNOs, Sale
and Leaseback, Regulation, Nicaragua, Guatemala, In the next few pages, we offer a comprehensive
Panama, Jamaica, El Salvador, Honduras analysis of major trends, transactions and
Arianna Neri, Head of Americas, TowerXchange
news from the LatAm telecom tower industry,
starting with an updated tower count and a
Read this article to learn: comprehensive report on the landscape of
< An update on LatAm tower transactions in 2012 and 2013 independent towercos active in Central and South
< LatAm tower count and mid-market towercos scenario America.
< Perspectives on the Brazilian, Mexican and Chilean telecom tower market
< The growth of BTS in Brazil: drivers and challenges In addition to the towercos listed in the tower
< Mexico and its complex telecom tower industry count graphic, TowerXchange has identified a
< The potential of the Chilean market wide array of mid-sized tower companies active
in the CALA region. Brazilian focused Brazil

Tower Company, QMC Telecom, Highline do Brasil Estimated number of towers owned or managed by towercos in Latin America
and Torres Andinas are all actively pursuing Source: TowerXchange research, quarterly filings, site lists
BTS opportunities alongside CSS and T4U. The 1,163 457
Mexican landscape hosts Torrecom - also active American Tower 6,771 3,496 8,412 58
in Guatemala and Nicaragua, and Continental 498
SBA Communications 5,151 480 417 250 471 139
Tower Corp, which also operates in Guatemala, Brazil
Nicaragua, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Grupo Torresur 6,094 Columbia
Jamaica, Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica and El Chile
BR Towers 4,000
Salvador. Additionally, we report activities of Peru
Torres Andinas in Chile, Peru and Colombia as Torres Unidas 400 350
Panama
well as Torresecs involvement in Ecuador and Mexico Tower Partners 600 Costa Rica
Puerto Rico. Teletower Dominicana is involved Nicaragua
T4U 500
in the development of the Dominican Republics Guatemala
tower sector while Torres de Panama operates in IIMT 180 Mexico
Panama. CSS 180 El Salvador
Brazil: 7,000 new towers to be built in 2014, ten 0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000
active towercos and 20,000 towers on sale Source: TowerXchange
The Brazilian tower market has been experiencing of major service providers and towercos active projects, the country isnt facing a shortage of
an unprecedented growth pattern over the course in the national territory and due to the highly players and yet, the tower construction game
of the past three years. To quote Grupo TorreSur complicated bureaucracy behind licensing and hasnt achieved the desired pace.
CEO and Chairman, Jim Eisenstein Brazil, in permitting. One additional challenge to the optimal
particular, has been like the U.S. tower industry in development of the Brazilian BTS market comes
fast forward. The proposed Law of Antennas, now in draft form, from the sometimes contentious conditions -
might simplify the requirements for towercos and such as generous cancellation terms and heavily
As previously reported, SindiTelbrasil has carriers seeking permits for greenfield projects discounted lease rates - carriers have secured
assessed that 9,556 new towers should be installed but to date, the procedure is in the hands of local from some towercos. This has disincentivised the
over the course of 2014 in order to reach the governments and municipalities and hasnt been major international towercos from participating
ambitious 4G coverage goal. That would mean 30 unified. in the Brazilian BTS market, which could be
new towers per day for the entire year. problematic if Bloomberg are correct in their
With a wide array of mid-sized towercos such recent speculation that Brazils middle market
In reality, we are likely to see no more than 7,000 as Brazil Tower Company, QMC Telecom, T4U towercos had capacity to build only 1,600 towers
new towers erected in Brazil during this year and Tower Management, Torres Andinas and Highline per year. However, in light of the 60 GB of data
this is due both to the actual construction capacity do Brasil all competing to secure build-to-suit traffic per second registered during the 2012

London Olympics and the 500 GB splashed during
Major tower transactions in Latin America 2012/2013 the US Super Bowl back in February 2012, key
players in the Brazilian telecom tower sector will
need to run the extra mile to meet these highly
Date Seller Buyer Country USD/Tower Tower Sites Value in USD
ambitious targets on time.
SBA
Q4 2013 Oi Communications Brazil 321 2,007 645 million
In the midst of this complex yet exciting scenario,
Q3 2013 Nextel America Tower Brazil 148 2,790 413 million American Tower, SBA Communications, BR Towers
and Grupo TorreSur have dominated the Brazilian
Q3 2013 Nextel America Tower Mexico 239 1,666 398 million
sale and leaseback market and have acquired over
SBA 20,000 towers since 2010, at an average price of US
Q3 2013 Oi Communications Brazil 163 2,113 343 million
Global Tower $175,000 per tower.
Q3 2013 American Tower US/Costa Rica N/A 15,700 4.8 billion
Partners*
Brazilian tower portfolios valuations take into
Q2 2013 Oi BR Towers Brazil 119 2,113 251 million
consideration the tower location, its existing and
potential tenancy ratio, its structural capacity and
Q2 2013 Oi Grupo TorreSur Brazil 138 2,113 293 million
the anchor tenant fee agreed with the carrier. As
such, cost per tower is at best a crude measure of
Q1 2013 Sitesharing BR Towers Brazil N/A 350 N/A
value.
Q1 2013 Axtel American Tower Mexico 283 883 250 million
During the recent American Tower International
Q4 2012 Telefonica Torres Unidas Chile N/A 400 N/A Analyst Day, AMT indicated that its Brazilian
SBA portfolios acquired in the early 2000s had
Q4 2012 Telefonica Brazil 223 800 178 million
Communications achieved a tenancy ratio of 3.2 in 2013, indicative
of sustained tenancy ratio growth of around 0.2
Q4 2012 OI Grupo TorreSur Brazil 214 1,208 258 million
per year, considered very healthy for emerging
market towerco economics.
Q3 2012 Telefonica BR Towers Brazil 132 1,912 252 million
To add spice to an already dynamic scenario,

Q2 2012 Telefonica American Tower Brazil 150 1,500 225 million
recent news have reported that Tim Brasil is
Q1 2012 Telefonica American Tower Chile 172 558 96 million currently considering divesting its 7,000+ tower
portfolio in order to finance its 4G network plans.
* company acquisition Rumours suggest that there might be as many as
three more substantial Brazilian tower portfolios
Special thanks to Jonathan Atkin, Managing Director at RBC Capital Markets for his contribution for sale in addition to TIMs and this could bring

agency was created - IFETEL - with constitutional
Towerco economics: tenancy ratio growth status and a mandate to ensure economic
competition and universal coverage. The new
Example tenancy ratio growth (American Tower Brazil 2002-13) body is independent from the executive and
legislative powers, unlike COFETEL, the previous
3.5 acting agency.
Looking at the current status of the market, the

3 rationale behind the reform is evident. Out of the
four carriers active in Mexico, Amrica Mvils
Telcel, is the most powerful actor with market
2.5 share beyond 70%, with the remaining market
being split among Movistar, Iusacell and Nextel.
2 Changing the status quo in a country heavily

dominated by one company is not an easy task
and we will have to wait until the secondary
1.5 legislation comes into place, later this year, to
fully evaluate the practical impact of the reform.
In the meantime, we could witness a tremendous

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 growth of the Mexican tower industry. It has
been estimated that, in addition to the existing
Source: TowerXchange 22,500-23,000 Mexican towers, an additional
70,000 towers are needed in order to reach 90%
the number of towers for sale over 20,000. We Mexican telecom tower sector published in the coverage.
expect major towercos to gear up for an exciting TowerXchange Journal, the next two years could
rest of the year and will keep following the prove crucial for the Mexican tower industry as However, this might prove to be an challenging
Brazilian tower market development as they various factors are contributing to create a perfect task, considering that Mexico has one of the
unfold. storm for investment in the country. highest costs per tower in the region. In 2013,
American Tower acquired 2,790 towers for
Mexico: low penetration rates, 111 million In 2013, Mexican President Enrique Pea US$413 million in Brazil and 1,483 towers for
people and the potential to become a key Nieto issued a constitutional amend aimed at US$323 million in Mexico from NII Holdings
telecom tower player transforming the Mexican telecommunications (operating as Nextel). The average price per
As stated by BMI in a recent analysis of the industry. As part of the reform, a new regulatory tower in Brazil was US$148,000 whereas each

Mexican tower was valued at US$252,000. And Chile: 5% 4G coverage, a proactive government their attention relatively quickly.
this is a consistant trend we have witnessed in and the most stable business environment in
Mexican transactions since 2011, when American Latin America Thanks to its openness to international investment
Tower acquired 2,500 towers from Telefonica at In 2012, a new law came into effect in Chile (N. and a proactive government, the Chilean telecom
US$200,000 per tower and Global Tower Partners 20.599) setting clear construction guidelines industry is expected to keep delivering growth,
bought a portfolio of 199 towers from the same in order to ensure all new towers built in the great news for incumbent operators Claro,
carrier for US$40 million (USD 200,000/tower). country have the structural characteristics to host Movistar and Entel, and for American Tower and
multiple tenants. The same law outlined stringent Torres Unidas, who both operate substantial tower
In spite of current challenges faced by the national conditions for the installation of towers in saturated portfolios in Chile.
telecom tower industry, Mexico is a country with and sensitive areas as well as compensation for
great potential and, quoting the CEO of Digital communities affected by new towers erection. LatAm towercos and carriers: a business
Bridge Holdings (which owns Mexico Tower partnership in the making
Partners), Marc Ganzi a poster child for wireline These new rigid measurements have contributed LatAm is host to a highly complex and thriving
replacement, as well as explosive wireless internet to the apparent slowdown of the Chilean telecom tower industry, led by AMT and SBA and the two
and data consumption. tower market in spite of representing a clear push Brazilian leaders, but also consisting of a host of
towards infrastructure sharing which has recently innovative middle market towercos supporting
In his recent interview with TowerXchange, Marc been mandated in rural areas. the regions enormous thirst for new towers.
commented: I am particularly keen on the Mexican
market, and feel we can grow our business there With 4G covering just above 5% of the country, Although facing many challenges, especially
significantly. It can take investors quite a long time carriers are actively involved in rollout, following related to the imminent need to reform telecom
to get comfortable with the operational norms, two successful auctions in February 2014 (700MHz regulations from Mexico to Brazil to facilitate
currency, political and sovereign risks inherent 4G spectrum) and July 2012 (2.6Ghz spectrum). the access of new players and international
in Mexico, but Ive been there for over 15 years, investors, Central America, the Caribbean and
which gives our investors comfort in backing us, The Chilean government is heavily involved in South America are potential candidates for the
and means were given the autonomy to run the the promotion and regulation of the ICT sector further development of a profitable telecom tower
business as we see fit. and has set very clear coverage requirements that industry.
will push carriers to invest in infrastructure and
Theres tremendous demand for new sites in expand their current portfolios by three to four With most countries over 100% subscriber
Mexico, with significant capital being deployed by times, as analysed by BMI in a recent article for penetration and with a growing middle class
Telcel and Telefnica in their desire to cover the the TowerXchange Journal. However, as per BMIs demanding value added services and driving
entire population - its a big country with lots of report, 3G connections in Chile accounted for 26.8% demand for data, the time is right for carriers
rural communities and an extremely fast growing of total subscriptions at the end of 2013, following to invest in the deployment of 4G LTE and to
middle class. The need for coverage and capacity growth of 29% year on year. This data shows that welcome the new wave of independent towercos
sites make Mexico an ideal tower market, as it Chilean subscribers demand higher value services as a business partner enabling the sector to fully
clearly will need future new builds and collocation. and therefore suggests that 4G is likely to capture develop its potential

Seeking value
in the Brazilian towers market
Figure 1: Major tower acquisitions in Brazil, 4Q 20114Q 2013 Source: TowerXchange, 2014
350
Grupo Torre Sur American Towers
300
BR Towers SBA Communications
EV/Tower (USD pertower)
Arianna Neri, TowerXchange Brian Burns, Analysys Mason

250
four large tower companies: American Tower, BR
Towers, Grupo TorreSur and SBA Communications.
200
321 When one considers the variation in value per

150
tower across the transactions shown in Figure 1,
214 223 it becomes clear that this is a crude and imperfect
100 195
163 measure. The value of towers depends to a great
150 138 148
132 119 extent on the attractiveness of the location, the
50
structural capacity, potential tenancy ratio, and the
anchor tenant lease rate agreed with MNOs. These
Dec Apr Sep Dec Dec May May Jul Aug Dec factors are encompassed by the three major drivers
2011 2012 2013 of value for buy-and-leaseback portfolios (see
Towers in
transaction 1200 1500 1912 1208 800 2113 2113 2113 2790 2007 Figure 2).
The Brazilian towers market has been capturing Buy and leaseback: the attractiveness of towers Build to suit: the market may represent an
investors attention, with ten major tower varies considerably between portfolios opportunity for mid-sized towercos, although it
transactions since 4Q 2011 and approximately 7000 is not without challenges
new towers expected to be built during 2014. A In recent transactions in Brazil, tower portfolios
peculiarity of the market is the distinction between have been sold at an average price of USD175 000 Historically active in the construction industry,
the players focusing on the buy-and-leaseback per tower (see Figure 1). This suggests that Brazilian most MNOs are now streamlining operations
market, and those focusing on the build-to-suit towers are valued at a premium to those in other and subcontracting to third-party partners to
market. In this article, we examine the value drivers emerging markets, which have typically had lower develop build-to-suit projects. Larger towercos are
for both these segments of the tower space. valuations. Acquisitions have been limited to focusing on buy-and-leaseback transactions, which

Figure 2: Sources of value for buy-and-leaseback tower transactions in Brazil different licences from state and local governments.
Brazil has not yet achieved a unified legal
framework for new tower installation, although a
Sources of value Considerations Brazilian context
new Lei das Antennas (Law of Antennas), which
could simplify leasing and permitting, is in draft
form.
Prices dictated by the divesting MNO
(refined in negotiation with towerco) Brazilian MNOs have typically accepted
Pricing level for Conclusion: understanding the portfolio specifics
MNOs set anchor lease prices to higher lease prices in exchange for a
anchor tenant
balance portfolio sale value versus higher portfolio value is key to assessing value
ongoing future lease payments
On the whole, the Brazilian telecoms tower

industry is an appealing market with proven
Valuations have reflected the starting point
growth potential. However, it presents considerable
Secure revenue stream with a tenancy ratio:
significant impact on valuation challenges, particularly for the build-to-suit
< American Tower August 2013:
Number of existing < Attractive to investors with a lower 1.00 tenants, USD148000/tower market, such as the absence of a unified regulatory
third-party tenants appetite for risk < SBA July 2013:1.15 tenants, USD163000/ framework, uncertainties in light of recent
< However, high tenancy ratios imply tower MNO consolidation rumours, as well as a highly
lower potential for future growth < SBA December 2012: 1.33 tenants,
USD223000/tower competitive base station market.
Given the significant variations in tower valuations

Critical input to valuation of portfolios, in the Brazilian market, it is absolutely vital to
Valuations have reflected the perception
but an area of uncertainty
that the portfolios are likely to continue to develop robust understanding of the attractiveness
Potential for growth Analysys Mason has developed a robust experience rapid growth
in tenancy ratio proprietary approach for forecasting of the specific portfolio being considered using
< American Towers 2002 vintage
tenancy ratios in order to minimise cost per tower comparisons is clearly insufficient.
achieved a tenancy ratio of 3.2 in 2013
uncertainty and risk Having undertaken more than 70 engagements in
the tower sector in the last 3 years, Analysys Mason
Source: Analysys Mason and TowerXchange, 2014, American Tower International Analyst Day, 2013
has deep expertise in assisting clients to understand
represents a potential opportunity for mid-sized not always maximise value creation for towercos. the value of tower portfolios, and is considered the
towercos such as Brazil Tower Company, CellSite In fact, mobile operators contracting towercos to leading advisor in this space
Solutions, Highline do Brasil, QMC Telecom and T4U develop greenfield projects often achieve heavily
Tower Management to get involved in the attractive discounted lease rates as part of the deal and This article has been co-authored by Arianna
Brazilian market. negotiate generous cancellation terms in the Neri and Brian Burns, a Manager at Analysys
contract. This can have an adverse effect on the Mason, the specialist adviser on telecoms,
However, in the Brazilian context, the dynamics long-term valuation of such assets. Moreover, media and technology (TMT) worldwide.
of the highly competitive build-to-suit market do greenfield projects require as many as seven

Planex on the
TowerXchange: Please tell us about Planex
Technology, its activities and geographical
footprint
Argentinian tower industry Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies:

Planex Technology was established in Argentina
And beyond! Multi-disciplinary expertise key to Planexs growth across LatAm
in 1992 with the mission to provide technology
solutions for the telecom industry.
Planex Technology started its operations in
Argentina over twenty years ago and since To date, we are active in various Latin American
then has become an established service countries with offices in Argentina, Peru, Guatemala,
provider in over fifteen countries. We had Venezuela and Colombia as well as operations
the pleasure to discuss the Argentinian in Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, Bolivia, El Salvador,
telecom sector in general, the opportunities Honduras, St. Martin, Belize, Nicaragua, Panama,
Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Moreover, we
for the tower industry with LTE imminent,
have had an office in Miami since 2002.
and the challenges of import limitations
with Planex President, Marcelo Krimer. We offer engineering and technology services to
carriers, OEMs as well as telecom cooperatives,
Keywords: Planex Technology, Argentina, corporations and governmental entities. Our array
Peru, Guatemala, Venezuela, Colombia, of services include project engineering, site analysis,
Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, Bolivia, El Salvador, installation and integration of services, support and
Honduras, St. Martin, Belize, Nicaragua, maintenance of systems et cetera.
Panama, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Miami,
Latin America, Interview, Active Equipment, Planex employs over one hundred employees and the
Central America, South America, O&M, 4G, majority of our staff are engineers with a very wide
SLA, KPIs range of expertise on network access, satellite and
Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies
wireless networks as well as fibre optic installation.
We started with a focus on testing services for
Read this article to learn: network quality control and since then we have been
< An overview of the Argentinian telecom sector able to add more specialised services to our portfolio.
< Is a multi-disciplinary and flexible approach to business the key to succeed in LatAm?
< Is Argentina ready for tower companies? Since 1996, we have started offering value added
< O&M outsourcing - a growing trend in the region services in Argentina which include voicemail
platforms, SMS and pre-paid service platforms, and

we are now actively supporting clients all over Latin
America.
Five years ago, we got involved in the machine to

machine business which we foresee as a growth
area in the market. Therefore, we support our
customers to manage remote services, monitor the
status of their equipment as well as towers through
specialised software.
Our key clients are carriers from across Central and

South America but we are starting to work with
tower companies on a variety of issues.
TowerXchange: Can you give us a brief overview

of the telecom market in Argentina?
Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies:

Argentina hosts four active carriers and one MVNO.
A view of Buenos Aires

In 1990, the government decided to privatise the
telecom sector. Breaking the previous monopoly of A few years ago, the government established ARSAT and I believe that the process will gain speed once
ENTel resulted in the market being split into two as part of the Argentina Connected Program with the 4G LTE becomes a true priority for carriers. At that
areas with the north managed by a consortium aim of installing over 50,000 Km of Federal fibre- point, the country will need thousands of new towers
between Telecom Italia and France Telecom - optic network in the country. This project will allow and the logical solutions will be to welcome tower
Telecom Argentina - and the south controlled by access to areas yet to be covered and will enable companies with the right expertise and knowledge.
Spanish Telefonica. municipalities to build their own local network to The development of 4G LTE network in Argentina is
connect to the main fibre-optic backbone. a political decision which will be reached in the near
To date, Amrica Mvils Claro is the leading carrier future in light of the growing demand of broadband
with approximately 21 million subscribers, followed TowerXchange: Is there much activity in the services.
by Telefonicas Movistar (17 million subscribers), independent tower industry in Argentina?
Telecom Argentinas Personal (16 million TowerXchange: Which of your offered solutions
subscribers) and Nii Holdings NEXTEL with around Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies: are currently most in demand in Latin America
2 million subscribers. Argentina has one of the With regards to its tower industry, Argentina has not and what are the drivers behind that growth in
highest penetration rate of the region at 147%. yet developed a strong market for tower companies demand?

Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies: I central sites, which strongly contributes to reduce properly and dont interfere with other equipment
would say that our offering varies depending on the network and operating costs while improving the carrier wants to use, especially if they are from
country we are focusing on. One of our key strengths network performance. Aforementioned device another supplier, and use different protocols etc.
is the ability to diversify our portfolio of technology repair solutions take care of issues inherent to the This is the key focus of our R&D unit - to ensure that
and engineering solutions so to be fully aligned with new protagonists of the mobile era smartphones our products are interoperable with any existing
the demands of all the regional carriers. by combining automatic health checks and device, and to certify that any change on the
resolutions with assisted remote take over and provided solution will fulfil the expectations of our
A key solution clients often demand is the network support, community collaboration, peer-to-peer customers.
quality measurement which serves as a detector of remote resolution and control through friends and
congestion issues in the network that can result in family assistance. TowerXchange: What proportion of your business
dropped calls and bad service. comes from carriers and what from tower
TowerXchange: Tell us about your R&D companies or OEMs?
Governments in the region have been very strict laboratories. Which technologies are you
with regards to the quality of calls and services working on and how does the R&D business add Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies:
offered by carriers and there are severe fines in value to your existing offering? We work with most carriers active in the region so
place to ensure carriers perform quality checks Planex is definitely a carrier-oriented company and
on their networks. Planex offers several solutions Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies: Our 80% of our revenue comes from work developed for
to help carriers maintain network performance R&D laboratories started as an in-house solution to them.
complying with QoS standards at all times. integrate our offerings with the existing products
clients want to connect to: pieces of equipment, However, we also work with governments,
Nevertheless, active and passive network software, platforms et cetera. corporations and we hope to work more with tower
measurement is just the feedback piece of a chain companies in the near future. Our goal is to grow the
of tools that contributes to ensuring QoS/QoE. The Our R&D team executes tests and verifications on non carrier segment of our business to the point it
market is evolving and adopting solutions that internal feature applicability on the IP/PBX centrals, surpasses the carrier segment.
proactively improve customer satisfaction while DWDM equipment, control and access systems,
reducing opex happens not just at the network homologation cross references, O&M front end TowerXchange: Is O&M outsourcing a big trend in
layer, but also through automatic verification and systems, FTTX terminals, optical line units, monitor the region? If so, what are the key characteristics
repair tools on the user terminals themselves, along and measurements control units, L2/L3 switches, of an outsourcing contract you sign with a client?
with customer support infrastructure that is able routers, remote terminal units among others. Which KPIs need to be achieved?
to proactively and automatically monitor terminal
behaviours and trigger solutions from a distance. The goal is to make them work together following Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies:
normative standards and customer requirements. This is definitely a growing trend in Latin America.
Latin America operators are showing increasing With constantly evolving technology and continuous Carriers are reducing their focus on infrastructure,
interest and demand for remote site monitoring challenge of new mature products, it is very operational issues and maintenance and trying to
solutions for attended and unattended cell and important to ensure that our solutions communicate optimise the ratio between revenue and headcount

by outsourcing anything not strictly related to their savvy with multi-specialty backgrounds. and we hope to do even more in this area.
core business.
You see, in any other part of the world, highly Hybrid energy can serve the tower industry by
Therefore, this is an opportunity for us to serve specialised teams are expert in their own complementing traditional sources of energy in
as an outsourcing partner while carriers focus on niche sector. However, in Latin America, it is of off-grid sites but this is yet to become a widespread
marketing, customer experience and other core paramount importance to reach high levels of solution in LatAm. As I foresee energy becoming a
competencies. expertise in multiple areas, otherwise companies problem in the next five years, we want Planex to
will struggle to achieve economies of scale. It is a keep exploring solutions to be ready when clients
In terms of KPIs, geographical coverage plays a big simple equation: the more services you are able to will start requesting them.
role. It is fundamental to ensure our clients ability provide while ensuring high standards, the more
to reach and serve remote areas with a good QoS business you will acquire. Over the next few years, governments and carriers
supported by excellent O&M processes. will put added emphasis on the Quality of Service
Planex has experienced a very low staff turnover of networks. Therefore, solutions and tools to
The level of expertise is another factor. O&M and has several Director-level employees that address this crucial matter will have to follow
contractors often use in-house teams in conjunction started in the company as technicians or trainees evolution and Planex is playing an important
with subcontracted personnel. Therefore, we need while still completing their studies. I believe our role in consulting and providing cutting edge QoE
to ensure that the team is up to speed and capable of personnel development and succession planning solutions.
meeting expectations even if they are subcontracted gives us an added value when it comes to proving
from third-party companies and not part of our in- our credibility to a potential client. Moreover, tower companies and carriers will
house team. keep focusing on reducing operating costs while
We are constantly innovating and adding services to adding efficiency and cell site density to LTE
Coordination between the various parties involved our portfolio. While the market evolves, we go with networks over the next five years. Planex will keep
is highly relevant. Our customer service personnel, it. supporting companies involved in the telecom
operational team, the account executive in charge of sector by adopting enhanced remote monitoring
a specific client all need to be able to communicate TowerXchange: How do you see your business and automated M2M solutions along with offering
and work together while keeping the SLAs and KPIs evolving in the next 3-5 years? outsourcing services.
in mind.
Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies: In-building wireless network design and
TowerXchange: How do you differentiate your We would like Planex to become a more global deployment of in-building solutions is currently
offering from the competition? And which company with a stronger and larger presence in the under investigation to cope with the QoS and
factors ensure your products and services are countries where we operate. bandwidth demands of the 4G networks.
delivered on time and respect high standards? Moreover, we would like to deepen our involvement
in areas such as renewable energy and its potential In conclusion, the telecom industry is changing at a
Marcelo Krimer, President, Planex Technologies: We for the telecom sector. We are already working with very fast pace and we need to be extremely open to
are a flexible team of engineers, very technology partners able to offer renewable energy solutions changes

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Special feature:
Chile case study

With mobile penetration at almost 140%, 4G LTE deployment
underway and approximately 1,500 towers in the hands of towercos,
Chile is considered one of the most interesting telecom markets in
the CALA region.
The growth of the Chilean broadband market is surpassing the OECD

standards by four times, thanks to the countrys forward-thinking
approach to the development of a robust ICT sector. In fact, the
Chilean government has highlighted the growth of the telecom and
technology industries as one of its strategic objectives to further
enhance the countrys GDP and overall stability.
In TowerXchanges Chile special feature, BMI and Mott MacDonald

offer our readers comprehensive insights into Chiles telecom sector,
its growth pattern and the impact of recent regulatory changes on its
industrial landscape. And we talk to two of Chiles leading turnkey
infrastructure providers, Mer Group, Telecom Division and AJ
Ingenieros.
Dont miss:
63 Editorial: LTE could stimulate tower industry growth in Chile
66 The Mott MacDonald Share Square for Chile
69 BMI: Strong fundamentals will see the Chilean tower market
heat up
72 Mer Group: the hotspots for turnkey infrastructure
deployments in LatAm
77 AJ Ingenieros: an integrated solution providers view of the
Chilean tower industry

LTE could stimulate
4G LTE gains momentum
The three major Chilean carriers - Claro, Movistar
tower industry growth in Chile and Entel - have all successfully launched 4G LTE
networks.
From 4G LTE rollouts to government activities to boost the telecom industry

Claro was the first to upgrade its network and
launched 4G LTE back in June 2013, followed by
Defined as one of the most open and mature industries
Telefonica Movistar in November.
in Latin America, the Chilean telecom sector enjoys
full competition and a modern infrastructure and
Entel Chile has announced the upgrade in March
regulatory system.
2014 and is now offering LTE-2600 to its 10,000
subscribers through 803 sites across the country.
Thanks to its openness to international investment and
a proactive government, the national telecom industry
Last month, the Chilean telecom regulator (Subtel)
is expected to keep delivering growth, great news for
allocated three additional tranches of spectrum
incumbent operators Claro, Movistar and Entel, and for
in the 700MHz band to Entel, Movistar and Claro.
American Tower and Torres Unidas, who both operate
The terms of the concession require carriers to
substantial tower portfolios in Chile.
deploy 4G networks nationwide within 24 months
including 1,281 remote regions, 503 schools and 13
Keywords: Chile, Claro, Movistar, Telefonica, roads.
Entel, 4G, LTE, Network, Subtel, Licenses, MVNO,
American Tower, Torres Unidas, Towercos, An interesting feature of the concession is the
Transactions, Nextel, VTR Wireless, AJ Ingenieros, obligation for carriers to open their networks to
Regulations, Minister of Transport and MVNOs. A move in line with the governmental push
Telecommunication, Digital Agenda, Imagina Chile for enhanced competition and higher quality of
2013-2020, ICT, Meetup Preview service.
Arianna Neri, Head of Americas, TowerXchange
A sleepy year for tower transactions

Read this article to learn:
< The status of 4G LTE network deployment The Chilean telecom tower industry hosts several
< What is happening in the Chilean telecom tower industry active towercos and may be subject to considerable
< Government initiatives to push the ICT sector forward change over the course of the next few months.
< Where to meet key executives from the national telecom industry
To date, American Tower is reported to own and

operate 1,150 co-located sites while Berkshire
Partners-backed Torres Unidas owns an additional
500 independent towers.
Major carriers such as Nextel - recently acquired

by Chilean Entel from NII Holdings - VTR Wireless
and Movistar could all decide to sell their tower
portfolio in order to expand their 4G LTE networks
and this would create enticing opportunities for
AMT, Torres Unidas and any prospective new
market entrants.
The last tower transaction recorded in Chile took

place in Q4 2012, when Telefonica Movistar sold
558 towers to AMT for US$96 million. In the same
period, Torres Unidas acquired 400 towers from
Telefonica Movistar for an undisclosed amount.
Government increases its commitment to ICT

Santiago de Chile
sector
Converge in ICT services prices with the OECD countries
As featured in our interview with Francisco 1.2% 2.8%
Average value of the basket ICT
Briceo from AJ Ingenieros, in 2012, the Chilean Current Goal
Source: International Telecommunications Union ITU. Year of publication: 2012
Senate approved a new law establishing clear rules
regarding telecom tower installation. Entire country with internet access
40.7% 80%
Internet penetration by number of people
Current Goal
Specifically, the law sets parameters with regards Source: Vice Ministry of Telecommunications. Year of publication: 2012
to towers spacing in sensitive areas near schools,
Free WiFi internet access in all Chilean towns and cities
hospitals, gardens etc. The law favours tower 25% 100%
sharing and the installation of camouflaged towers Percentage of towns with free public WiFi internet
Current Goal
in order to preserve the landscape and reduce the Source: Vice Ministry of Telecommunications. Year of publication: 2012
visual impact of greenfield projects.

Chilean households connnected with high speed internet
<1%% 50%
Earlier in 2013, the Chilean President Sebastin Percentage of high speed connection for home
Goal Goal
Piera, along with the Minister of Transport and Source: Vice Ministry of Telecommunications. Year of publication: 2012

10% of GDP will come from knowledge economy
5.2% 10% Percentage of ICT sales over GDP total
Current Goal Source: Ministry of Economy. Year of publication: 2012
Duplicate the amount of digital companies

8,878 18,000 Amount of companies in the ICT area Please feel free to contact the TowerXchange team
Current Goal Source: Internal Revenue Service. Year of publication: 2011 For editorial & speaking enquiries regarding Africa or Asia:
Kieron Osmotherly
CEO & Head of Africa
Promoting innovation and entrepreneurship for the new knowledge E: kosmotherly@towerxchange.com
44 33
economy M: +44 7771 148001
Current Desired
position position Global competitiveness ranking - innovation For editorial & speaking enquiries regarding LatAm or
Source: World Economic Forum. Year of publication: 2012 Europe:

Arianna Neri
Head of Americas
Telecommunication, Pedro Pablo Errzurriz, The Chilean telecom industry live in Orlando
E: aneri@towerxchange.com
presented the Digital Agenda Imagina Chile 2013- M: +39 338 111 2103
2020. The Agenda sets a clear roadmap for the Further information and insights on the Chilean
For advertising opportunities & event participation:
long-term development of the national ICT sector telecom industry will be provided during the Annabelle mayhew
and features thirty specific initiatives and goals TowerXchange Meetup Americas, taking place Chief Commercial Officer
that aim at facilitating telecom access for the entire in Orlando, 20-22 May, in co-location with PCIA E: amayhew@towerxchange.com
M: +44 7423 512588
Chilean population. Wireless Infrastructure Show.
For media partnerships & to request additional subscriptions:
Harpreet Sohanpal
The first target is for the ICT sector to represent At the Meetup, key executives active in the industry
Head of Marketing
10% of GDP by 2020 through the widespread use will share their views on the development of the
E: hsonanpal@towerxchange.com
of technology and, in order to achieve this target, Chilean telecom tower sector.
For the designers of the TowerXchange Journal & brand:
the Government has established five strategic
Jon Whitty
priorities and specific initiatives for each of them. Olivier Puech, CEO LatAm for American Tower and Senior Designer & Brand Development
Interestingly, the Government has compiled very Daniel Seiner, CEO of Torres Unidas, will participate E: jon@blacklightdesign.co.uk
clear monitoring indicators for each main strategy, in the Towerco keynote panel on Wednesday 21 May The TowerXchange Journal is published by Site Seven Media Ltd.
as shown in the table on the previous page. at 11:30am. Ricardo Loor, COO of Torres Unidas, will
2014 Site Seven Media Ltd. All rights reserved. Neither the whole
host a roundtable on Chile on Tuesday 20 May at nor any substantial part of this publication may be re-produced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without
These indicators, specifically related to digital 10:30am. the prior permission of Site Seven Media Ltd. Short extracts may
inclusion, connectivity and entrepreneurship, add be quoted if TowerXchange is cited as the source. TowerXchange
is a trading name of Site Seven Media Ltd, registered in the UK.
up to a comprehensive list including educational Contact me at aneri@towerxchange.com for more Company number 8293930.
and government related initiatives. information and to sign up for the Meetup

Share Square: Chile
The telecommunication sector in Chile has been
one of the most dynamic sectors over the last
few years and represented 5.72% of GDP in 2012.
The market generated an estimated US$7.4bn
in service revenue in 2012, up 9.4% from the
previous year.
Active
4 MNOs : Entel PCS, Movistar (Telefnica) and

Claro (Amrica Mvil) and 6 MVNOs
23.7 million unique subscriptions at the end of In order to develop the broadband and
2013- mobile penetration of 136%.
mobile telephony market and to increase the
Mobile broadband subscribers have increased by
894% over the last 5 years competitiveness of the market while maintaining
LTE spectrum issued in 2.6Ghz and 700Mhz bands
and initial services launched in 2013
its regional leadership within South America,
the Chilean governments strategy has been to
Current Sharing
Ley de Infraestructura para Torres de Antenas

Tower Law introduced in 2012 minimise regulations applied to the industry
Passive
Restricts tower construction in saturated areas

Outlines compensation scheme for local areas
Chilean Mobile Operators
Chile Tower Law constrains operators ability to deploy
new towers - expected to lead to more sharing
going forward.
MNOs
Third party tower operators, like ATC and Torres
Unidas, started their activities in 2010 and
manage around 1,600 towers between them (with
ATC the market leader) ENTEL PCS
MOVISTAR
With the new tower regulations, demand for 37.2%
37.5%
None
mobile broadband, recent investments in LTE

and the price war led by MVNOs, and with more
than 8,000 towers spread over the country...
Chile represents an attractive market for tower
operators
3G 4G CLARO 24%
Technology Deployment
NEXTEL 0.5%
Opportunity for TowerCo entry with Opportunity for Outsourcing Limited opportunity for new NETLINE 0.0%
focus on high Lease Up Rate (LUR) by MNO to TowerCo entrant TowerCo
GTD MOVIL
VTR MOVIL
Chile has a population of around 17.4m, and subscriptions are Prepaid. There are 3 principal 0.0%
0.3%
had 23.7 million mobile subscriptions at the mobile network operators: Entel PCS, Movistar
end of 2013, giving mobile penetration of 136%. (Telefnica) and Claro (Amrica Mvil), and 6 VIRGIN 0.4%
INTEREXPORT
5% subscriber growth is forecast for 2014, mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). 0.0%
tapering off over subsequent years. 70% of MVNOs

Figure 2 : Internet Connections per Access Type the three main operators submitted bids. Entel
spent around US$8,852,360 while Claro paid
US$2,907,781 and Movistar US$503,841.
7.00
Internet Connections per Access Type
LTE services began to be commercialized by
6.00
Claro in June 2013, quickly followed by Movistar
and Entel. In April 2014, Subtel announced that
5.00
Movistar, Entel and Claro had also each won a
Connections
spectrum block in the 700 MHz band for a total

Millions
4.00 combined of US$22 million. The three operators

have 24 months to deploy their networks
3.00 nationwide, to expand the coverage of 4G mobile
services and broadband connections across the
2.00 country, and national roaming must be offered to
other operators including MVNOs and entrants.
1.00 At present, 4G penetration is still low there
were only 39,000 subscribers at the end of 2013,
0.00 according to Subtel.
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
The tower sharing market
Fixed Broadband Mobile Broadband In June 2012, the Government adopted the Law
on the Regulation of Trans-Receiver Antennae for
leading historically to considerable mobile subscriptions). Between 2009 and 2013, mobile Telecommunications Services. The Tower Law
technology diversity. Today, except public entities broadband penetration experienced rapid requires that existing towers in sensitive and
using CDMA2000, all of the networks in Chile rely growth due to improved mobile coverage and the congested areas be shared with other operators,
on GSM to provide services arguably as a result explosion of smartphone adoption. Whilst fixed decommissioned or compensation be paid to
of the abundance of spectrum originally given to broadband connections increased by 35%, mobile local areas. Local areas can either to choose to
Entel (60 MHz), which over the last decade has broadband increased by 894% during this period camouflage towers to reduce the visual impact of
caused non-GSM operators to migrate to GSM. (see figure 2). the site or accept a tower structure that includes
compensation to the community up to 30% of the
3G services were launched by the 3 main 4G Developments value of the tower.
operators in 2007, and Entel and Movistar also In 2012 telecoms regulator Subtel held an auction
introduced 3.5G in the same year via HSPA for 120MHz of 4G spectrum in the 2.6GHz band, The new law on recognises that past deployment
and HSDPA technology. There were 9.7m 3G divided into 3 blocks of 40MHz, which attracted of towers impacts on the urban landscape and
subscriptions in December 2013 (41% of all more than a dozen operators - although only provides retroactive mitigation measures on

existing towers, but exclusively in two cases: In 2012, Peruvian based Torres Unidas also
acquired over 400 wireless towers from Participate in the
< In areas defined as tower-saturated i.e.
where there are more than two antenna support
Telefnica.
TowerXchange
towers within 100 metres; and
< In areas defined sensitive i.e. where
With the new tower regulations, the recent
investments in LTE rollout and a raging price war community
there are schools, hospitals, nursing homes led by MVNOs, and with more than 8,000 towers
and other similar areas defined by Subtel, spread over the country, Chile represents an
Tower
and which have also been formally identified attractive market for tower operators manufacture
by the municipalities within their respective & installation
communities. Guest columnist Alexandre Dole
Investors & Independent
This new law restricts network operators advisers towercos
ability to deploy new sites and towers which
is expected to lead to more sharing going
forward. However if an operator chooses not to
share its infrastructure with other operators,
Tower Xchange
it would be forced to pay the equivalent of
Decision
50% of the replacement value of the tower, or Regulators makers
20% if the tower is camouflaged. Major MNOs & policy at
makers operators
have negotiated tower sharing agreements or
paid compensation in about 80% of sensitive/ Equipment
congested areas designated by the regulator. & managed
However passive sharing is not significant services
outside sensitive/congested areas and there is no

active sharing in the market. Alexandre is a Consultant within Mott MacDonalds
Technology and Communications practice
In 2010, American Tower launched operations and has a considerable experience in mobile,
in Chile under the name ATC Sitios de Chile and terrestrial and satellite telecommunications. In Join the TowerXchange LinkedIn group at
purchased 287 base station sites from Telefnica the last 4 years, Alexandre has worked on several
telecommunications infrastructure developments
www.linkedin.com/groups/
Chile. In 2011, ATC acquired another 140 sites
from VTR. With the introduction of the Tower
around the world. Most recently, Alexandre has TowerXchange-4536974
been part of a Mott MacDonald team commissioned
Law in 2012, ATC acquired another 558 sites from
to execute an advisory study for a towerco looking
Movistar for the sum of US$96 million. Today the
to invest in developing markets
ATC portfolio in Chile contains 1,116 sites.

Strong fundamentals By comparison to some of its Latin American
neighbours, the Chilean market for third-party
will see the Chilean tower

tower companies has been relatively muted,
particularly since the end of 2012, when the last
market heat up
major transaction took place. The three major
Chilean mobile network operators have seen
declining contributions in voice revenues and
Regulatory changes and ideal business conditions will drive the countrys
shrinking profit margins, as capital expenditures
telecom sector growth are increased to cater to a growing transition to
non-voice and mobile data services. With these
The market for communication tower sharing appears to have cooled financial pressures, combined with coverage
in Chile, following the enactment of Law No. 20.599 published on requirements and other network maintenance and
June 11 2012, which established regulations for the installation of upgrades, it is common for operators to sell non-
antennas and transmission stations telecommunications services. core towers assets to third-party independent tower
Furthermore, economic headwinds from a slowdown in Chinese companies but this was not the case during 2013 or
demand for industrial metals exports have also led to slower GDP Q1 2014.
growth and weaker investment. Despite these trends, the Chilean
telecoms market maintains the strongest fundamentals in the region, Towers Act Has Slowed Down Asset Sales
backed by a favourable business environment and our outlook for We attribute this largely to the passage of Law No.
the towers market is more positive over the longer term, as growth 20.599, which set regulations for the construction of
in 3G/4G services increases along with consumer spending power. antennas and telecoms infrastructure to encourage
co-location and decrease the environmental
Keywords: BMI Analysis, Chile, Market Overview, South America, impact of tower saturation. Voluntary co-location
Towercos, MNOs, 3G, 4G, Rental Rates, Co-locations, Infrastructure had previously existed in the market, however,
Sharing, Market Forecasts, Country Risk, Regulation, Transactions, the Towers Law now requires that wireless
Towers Act, Spectrum Auction, License, MVNO, Investment, infrastructure is built with the capacity to share
Telefnica Chile, Entel PCS, Movistar, Claro, Amrica Mvil with other mobile providers. It also sets more
Jake Grant, ICT Industry Analyst, BMI
stringent conditions for the installation of towers
in saturated areas (areas with two or more), as
Read this article to learn: well as restricting the construction in sensitive
< The status of the Chilean telecom tower industry areas (such as near schools, hospitals, nurseries),
< How regulatory changes have impacted the telecom market development requires approval for towers over 12 metres
< The deployment of 4G LTE networks in Chile high and establishes compensation for local
< The attractiveness of the Chilean telecom market for foreign investors communities. With such rigorous conditions
regarding tower sharing between mobile operators

and tower construction, we believe this has acted
as a disincentive for operators to sell to third-party
Rise In CapEx Cuts Into Margins Telefnica Chile KPIs, 2008-2013
tower providers. Tower companies may also be CapEx As % of Revenue
60
hesitant to enter the Chilean market, cautious OIBDA Marging (%)
of how the laws may affect their operations and Source: Telefnica, BMI
potentially in anticipation of further regulations. 50
In the wake of the reforms, mobile operators

noted how these additional complications would 40
result in increased costs, as they compensate local
communities and make retroactive adjustments to
their existing tower portfolios. Although charging 30
rival operators in order to share infrastructure
should help recoup some of this expenditure, it is
possible that they will not be able to recover the full 20
investment.
Additional 4G Spectrum Will Require

Investment
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the longer term picture in Chile as more positive
and conducive to the tower sharing trend. The fund this heavy capital expenditure burden. which should lead to greater spending power
February 2014 auction of 700MHz 4G spectrum, Chile is one of the more developed mobile markets for mobile subscriptions and smartphones, for
will provide for the deployment of 4G networks to in Latin America, with 3G connections accounting example.
support the existing holdings of 2.6Ghz spectrum for 26.8% of total subscriptions at the end of 2013,
awarded in July 2012. Both licences came with following growth of 29% year-on-year. This shows Furthermore, networks are obliged to account for
rollout and coverage requirements, focusing on a strong demand for higher value services in MVNOs and will also need to include measures
underserved areas of the country and encouraging the country and 4G is therefore likely to be met for handling capacity from machine-to-machine
high quality of service. In order to meet these with some demand. We believe the country has a (M2M) connections. The rise in mobile data looks
commitments, the three main operators will need subdued consumer story over 2014 as a result of set to continue in Chile and will be one of the
to invest heavily in infrastructure, expanding their exchange rate weakness and higher inflation that outperformers in the region in terms of 3G/4G
current portfolios by three to four times their will weigh on purchasing power. However, our subscriptions and non-voice revenues. Mobile
current size. With higher costs of construction due view over the next decade is a lot stronger, as the operators will therefore need to explore tower
to the Towers Act, operators could look to divest country tries to diversify away from its dependence sharing options as a way to handle the extra
non-core tower assets to third parties in order to on mining to a more consumer-driven economy, capacity.

Strong Demand For 3G From Strong Competition Total 3G Subscriptions, 2009-2013
7,000,000
3G Connections, LHS
6,000,000 3G As % Mobile, RHS
Source: Subtel, BMI
5,000,000
4,000,000
3,000,000
Are you looking for a new member
of staff with relevant experience
2 ,000,000
in the emerging market telecom
tower industry?
1 ,000,000
Get your job noticed by the best potential

candidates by advertising in TowerXchange
journal and on our website and reach out to
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over 5,500 of the most skilled individuals in
The Most Stable Business Environment In Latin institutions have been the hallmark of the Chilean the tower industry - TowerXchange is read by
America government in recent years, and we believe that CEOs, CTOs, CFOs, commercial, engineering,
Also working in Chiles favour is the more stable the country will continue to set the benchmark for
operations and investment experts.
and favourable business environment that the political stability in the region going forward. While
country offers in comparison to the rest of the the market for towers has cooled since 2012 as a
region. Chile offers foreign investors some of result of the Towers Law and economic headwinds To see your advert here, contact Annabelle
the worlds most competitive business costs. leading to lower foreign investment in the economy, Mayhew on +44 (0)7423 512588 or email
Privatisation and deregulation have created the longer term picture for Chile is still the strongest amayhew@towerxchange.com
sophisticated public utility and telecoms industries, in the region and we expect to see the market for
while corporate taxes and labour costs are
moderately low. Market-friendly policies and strong
tower companies pick up as the rise in 3G and 4G
services continues to pick up
Tower Xchange

The hotspots for turnkey
TowerXchange: Weve spoken to MER Group
about your presence and capabilities in
Africa - in which countries are you active in
infrastructure deployments in the Americas? What capabilities do you have

locally?
Latin America Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER Group,
Telecom Division: MER Groups Telecom division
MER Group Telecom Division compares demand for towers and DAS in LatAm and Africa
has operated in Latin America for 13 years and is
Uri Bar Yosef is uniquely well qualified to compare the currently active in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Bolivia,
African and Latin American tower markets having spent Colombia, Panama and Mexico. We are also active
15 years with MER Group Telecom division, working in Ghana, Tanzania, DRC, Mozambique, Cote
his way up from an entry level position through roles in dIvoire and Kazakhstan and have legal entities
Africa, then moving to Chile to become CEO of their local in several other countries where we carried out
operation, before returning to their head office in Israel projects, and therefore are ready to re-enter those
to become General Manager of the global Infrastructure local markets should client engagements require.
operation, part of the groups Telecom division.
MERs Telecom Division capabilities in Latin
Keywords: Whos Who, Managed Services, Steelwork, America are very similar to those in Africa; we
O&M, Construction, Installation, Capacity Enhancements, undertake turnkey infrastructure implementation
Loading, Network Rollout, Build-to-Suit, Regulation, Tax,
projects and as well as design, manufacture and
Retrofitting, Warehousing, Multi-Country Partner, IBS, DAS,
VMI, Masts & Towers, Customs, Infrastructure Sharing, supply our own Tower structures, i.e. provide A-
Americas (South), Africa, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Z site construction and maintenance services, as
Colombia, Panama, Mexico, Entel, American Tower, well as supply camouflaged and quick deployment
Telefnica, Movistar, Entel, Claro, Amrica Mvil, Nextel, towers, TI services and installations, and in
VTR, MER Group, MER Telecom
Uri Bar Yosef, MER Group, Telecom Division building solutions.
Read this article to learn: MER Telecom Division is part of the broader
< MER Group Telecom Divisions operations and capabilities in LatAm and beyond MER Group and leverages its proven global
< The attractiveness of the tower market in Chile: 3 strong carriers, an established towerco market, track record, comprehensive knowledge and
mandated rural infrastructure sharing and strong BTS opportunities accumulated expertise to seamlessly deliver
< Demand for new towers in Mexico, Peru and Bolivia, and the challenges of the Argentinian market technologically innovative and best-of-breed
< What determines whether single or multi-tenant towers are installed solutions including M2M enablement and vertical
market applications, Mobile Financial Services,
< The growth of the IBS market in LatAm and in Africa, and the appeal of shared DAS
cloud billing, MVNO enablement, as well as on/off

board and remote/contactless payment solutions towers can be a maximum of just 12m high in
for public transport operators. urban areas, which makes it difficult to provide
capacity for more than two tenants, as well
TowerXchange: Looking back on your time as as usually requiring that no other tower be
CEO of MER Telecom Chile, tell us about the located within 80m. Regulations also enforce
tower industry in Chile. infrastructure sharing in rural areas.
Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER MER Telecom Division is proud of its ability to
Group, Telecom Division: Chile is a very developed forecast and adapt to market requirements not
market, led by two big operators with 6-7 million only in Chile but all over Latin America, Africa
subscribers each; Telefnica (Movistar), which and other regions where it is operating. For
of course operates tens of thousands of towers example, the growing population in Chile caused
across South and Central America, and Entel, capacity problems, so we developed a new quick
a substantial local private operator which deployment tower which took just one to two days
recently made an acquisition in Peru. Claro to get on the air. After the regulations changed
(part of Amrica Mvil) also has over 3 million and required the camouflage of towers in many
subscribers, Nextel entered Chile a few years ago, areas, we developed a series of new camouflaged
but is not as big yet, and VTR which is licensed but products to comply with the new law - we
seemed to be focusing more on cable. developed our own creative camouflage solutions
including Palm trees, Chimney poles, billboards
American Tower is becoming strong in Chile - and advertisement towers, which look like the sail
they bought 836 towers from Telefnica in three of a ship.
transactions, and are doing a lot of build-to-suit
work with all the operators. (TowerXchange: TowerXchange: How do local import duties and
American Towers Q3 2013 announcement states other tax regimes affect international suppliers
that they then owned 1,153 towers in Chile). selling into Latin America?
As in any other market, when a towerco Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER Group,
acquires assets, they undertake carry-overs and Telecom Division: Of course all suppliers are
upgrades to build capacity for additional tenants. affected by taxation costs, and each country has
Construction of new sites seems to be never own rates, which we take into our consideration.
ending in Chile! Since we manufacture our own towers and our
engineering is very cost effective, we are able to
There is a strong regulator in Chile, including compete even with local manufacturers.
a Telecom law which for example often means

Being an international company, MER Group single tenant towers, maybe with capacity for
manufactures most of its structures at its two large a subsequent generation of technology, unless
plants in Israel. We ship to our local branches and regulators mandate infrastructure sharing.
ensure we have half a year of inventory available Regulations can change the market completely,
to respond quickly to time-sensitive orders. We for example in Chile carriers have to build large
also use local factories to manufacture accessories towers for multiple tenants because of mandated
and smaller fixed infrastructure assets in Chile infrastructure sharing.
and Mexico, where we manufacture monopoles MER Telecom is installing
locally. Of course towercos think more about building
400-500 towers per year in
TowerXchange: In which countries do you
anticipate the greatest demand for new cell
sites in Latin America?
Mexico, so its critical that
we have stock available on
demand
capacity for multiple tenants, but at the end of the
day everyone wants to minimise capex.
Wherever there is a towerco there is work to

upgrade structures, for example in Chile we have
Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER Group, a big site survey and reinforcement project for the
Telecom Division: Mexico is a huge country and local towerco.
implementation of network extensions is on a
scale far beyond the rest of Latin America (except TowerXchange: How do the requirements of
for Brazil, although were not operating there at carriers and towercos differ between Africa
the moment). MER Telecom is installing 400-500 towers but its a challenging market, so we are and Latin America?
towers per year in Mexico, so its critical that we trying to open local manufacturing facilities.
have stock available on demand. We maintain Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER Group,
stock of a variety of towers so we can select So in summary, we see Mexico, Chile and Peru as Telecom Division: The biggest difference between
the right design for the local wind conditions particularly strong markets for us - theres also a Africa and Latin America is that of the power grid
and loading, which is critical for us in order to vast implementation movement in Bolivia. in South America. A much greater proportion
maintain a good market share in Mexico. of each country is electrified in South America -
TowerXchange: Do the majority of the towers there are very few sites running diesel generators
Peru is also an important market for us. Chilean you are building in Latin America have as their primary power source. Where there is no
carrier Entel acquired Nextel Peru in Q2 2013, capacity for multiple tenants? Are you getting a grid in Latin America, carriers and towercos think
and is working on permitting, ready for a big lot of work upgrading the structures of existing twice about whether to construct a site, whereas
expansion planned for this year. towers for multiple tenants? in Africa there is often no choice!
Argentina is a relatively problematic market for Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER TowerXchange: How does the market for In
us - unstable because of the economy, with harsh Group, Telecom Division: It depends on the client! Building Solutions (IBS) in Latin America
restrictions on quotations. We are importing some Generally the Latin American carriers will deploy compare to Africa?

Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER Group, Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER

Telecom Division: The growing need for indoor Group, Telecom Division: DAS deployments
capacity is not something that can be ignored, can cost US$50-200,000, so its a similar value
however the market for In Building Solutions is engagement for us to a macro site.
more developed in South America than in Africa.
The towercos are starting to get into the DAS
Were seeing an increasing volume of DAS market - nobody wants two or three different
deployments in big cities in South America. MER antennas in a building, so again this is an
Telecom recently acquired DAS manufacturer opportunity to acquire IBS sites, install DAS We think IBS will be a big
Optiway to strengthen its capacity and capability equipment and offer that infrastructure to trend in the near future
in DAS, so we are now able to offer end to end multiple operators. Our DAS technology supports
DAS services from design and engineering to multiple operators with multiple technologies
in Africa, driven by urban
installation and optimisation, including passive from a single set of antennas, with one set of capacity and the need to
equipment and active DAS with optical signal feeders supporting multiple BTS. reduce network congestion
transmission.
We think IBS will be a big trend in the near in densely populated
TowerXchange: Are DAS deployments of similar future in Africa, driven by urban capacity and buildings. As a matter of
value to macro sites? And are towercos starting the need to reduce network congestion in densely
fact weve recently started
to get into this market? populated buildings. As a matter of fact weve
recently started some deployments for Helios
Towers Tanzania.
TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how you

some deployments for Helios
Towers Tanzania

differentiate Mer Groups Telecom Division
from competitive turnkey infrastructure
providers in Latin America.
Uri Bar Yosef, GM, Infrastructure unit, MER

Group, Telecom Division: As an international However, its also critical that we have a local
company, Mer Telecoms capabilities are much presence in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Bolivia,
stronger than the smaller, regional companies Colombia, Panama and Mexico to keep up with
we compete with in Latin America. Mer Telecom changing market dynamics in these countries.
has superior logistic, manufacturing, financial, Theres nothing like direct contact with the client
engineering, and quality assurance capacities and to tailor our services to best meet their needs and
experience. provide quick, cost effective solutions

Towercos: an increasingly TowerXchange: Tell us about your company, its
operation and offerings
relevant client for LatAm integrated Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations, AJ
Ingenieros: AJ Ingenieros was founded in Santiago
solution providers de Chile in 1986, by Gabriel Olavarra and Flix

Olavarra, both engineers. Since then, the company
From television data networks to 4G LTE: the path to innovation of a Chilean has always been active as a provider of solutions for
solution provider the infrastructure sector and started by focusing on
television data transmission networks.
AJ Ingenieros was set up in Chile before mobiles even penetrated the
market. Initially active in setting up data transmission networks, the To date, we are a fully integrated solution provider,
company quickly entered the mobile industry in the nineties and has offering services to the mobile sector such as tower
since then offered its services to the growing Latin American telecom design and installation, engineering, construction
industry. and due diligence, among others.
In this exclusive interview, Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Originally based in Chile, AJ Ingenieros is now active
Operations for the company, shares his views on the evolution of the in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru,
regional telecom industry, how regulatory changes have impacted the Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica among others. We
telecom tower sector and how towercos are becoming an increasingly count more than 1,200 employees regionally with 500
relevant player in the region. of them based in our Headquarters in Chile.
Keywords: AJ Ingenieros, Interview, Chile, Peru, Dominican Republic, TowerXchange: Who are your key clients in the
Guatemala, Mexico, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Movistar, Claro, region? In which countries do you operate?
Entel, Nextel, OEM, Huawei, Ericsson, Towercos, Managed Services,
Central America, South America, 4G, LTE, Construction, Installation, Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations, AJ
Francisco Briceo, Vice President,
Operations, AJ Ingenieros Due Diligence, Infrastructure Sharing, Regulation Ingenieros: The majority of our business comes from
carriers such as Movistar, Claro and Entel which
Read this article to learn: represent 60% of our operations.
< How important are towercos for an integrated solution provider?
< The importance of strengthening and upgrading projects on towerco-owned portfolios Our second group of clients and almost 30% of our
< The new Chilean telecommunication law and its impact on tower construction
business is represented by OEMs such as Ericsson,
Huawei and others due to existing contracts they
< Key success factors when selecting an integrated solution provider
have with carriers whereby some of our services are
< The growth potential of the Chilean and Peruvian telecom markets
required.

We are now actively working with tower
companies which represent the additional 10% of
our business. With the exception of Mexico - where
we have been working with towercos for quite
some time - Id say that this client is a relatively
new category for us. We have been working with
tower companies for the past three to four years.
However, this area is growing fast and the demand
for our services by towercos is expanding.
Whereas it is a completely accepted model in

North America and Europe, towercos are still
establishing their presence in Latin America.
Therefore, I can foresee their role becoming
increasingly important over the next few years as
carriers divest their tower portfolios and towercos
become the direct owner of passive infrastructure.
However, we need to keep in mind that for some
carriers towers are still an extremely strategic
asset.
The region still lacks maturity to fully accept

towercos but I can see the perception shifting - its
a matter of time.
Image courtesy of AJ Ingenieros
TowerXchange: Tower transactions tend to First of all, since we have been active for thirty host multiple tenants. We havent done a lot of
unlock pent up maintenance work and tower years, a lot of the existing towers we are asked to maintenance projects yet as some of the facilities we
strengthening projects - have you seen much work on have been built and installed by us. This work on are relatively new.
demand for these kind of projects? If so, please industry tends to favour continuity when it comes
share an example or two. to business relationships and we have been working Moreover, tower companies are increasingly
on several strengthening projects on infrastructure contracting us to develop due diligence projects
Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations, we built several years ago. prior to portfolio acquisition. We analyse and
AJ Ingenieros: We have definitely experienced a evaluate portfolios tower by tower, asset by asset,
growth in demand for strengthening projects since To date, the majority of these projects focus on and we deliver a full report. Our engineering
towercos came into play. strengthening and upgrading existing towers to department has been very active with engagements

We have had a camouflaged tower offering for the Ingenieros - responsible for the entire project, from
past six years with a portfolio of products including design to completion. This model has been adopted
tree-like towers, totems, advertisement boards and in Chile and is the preferred model throughout
rooftops. We have various solutions which depend the region as it has so far ensured optimal
on the area chosen for the new project but all of communication between parties as well as success
them respond to the need to reduce the visual in meeting deadlines and working within budget.
impact of telecom towers.
We have been active for
almost thirty years and have
installed over 7,000 towers
across the region
Clients tend to opt for these solutions in order to
comply with law but also to maintain a positive
relationship with the community. Although the
price is somewhat higher than for standard towers,
By establishing offices in each country where we
operate, our project managers and teams have
direct, on the ground relationships with each
client. The only centralised aspect is production
which is entirely undertaken by our Chilean
as it must take into consideration ornamental factory.
factor as well as technical ones, some clients
have no choice but selecting these solutions as it TowerXchange: What are the critical success
allows them to establish service in areas otherwise factors tower operators should consider when
unreachable to due legal restrictions. selecting a design and manufacturing partner?
such as this lately, much more than in the past.
TowerXchange: How do you ensure your Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations, AJ
TowerXchange: Regulators often need to protect services are delivered on time and within Ingenieros: Id say that the key factor is experience.
the environment when permitting building budget? We have been active for more almost thirty years
new towers. How are your products helping to and have installed over 7,000 towers across the
preserve the environment? Is there a growing Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations, AJ region. Its safe to say we know our business inside
demand for camouflaged towers? Ingenieros: First of all, we allocate one project out and experience is the main reason for our
manager for each specific client in order to create success.
Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations, AJ an open relationship between the two with clear
Ingenieros: In 2012, the Chilean Senate approved communication and understanding of deadlines, Manpower, quality and standards of design and
a new law establishing clear rules regarding key milestones and requirements. Therefore, services as well as local presence are other critical
telecom tower installation. Specifically, the law our clients have one point of contact within AJ aspects Id recommend each company takes into
sets parameters with regards to towers spacing in Ingenieros throughout the duration of the project. consideration when selecting a business partner.
sensitive areas near schools, hospitals, gardens etc. This is a highly efficient system which has allowed
The law favours tower sharing and the installation us to create long standing, successful relationships We dont offer standardised solutions. Our
of camouflaged towers in order to preserve with our clients. products are fully customised and we work with
the landscape and reduce the visual impact of clients to find the perfect solution depending
greenfield projects. Moreover, there is only one company - AJ on their requirements. This is the most efficient

The telecom market is cyclic and has its own peaks
which usually correspond with the launch of new
technology. During those hectic times, we are
able to cover a high volume of projects thanks to
our internal resources and to a network of highly
experienced subcontractors.
TowerXchange: Out of the countries where you

are currently active, which are the ones with the
biggest potential in terms of the growth of their
telecom tower sector?
Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations,

AJ Ingenieros: This is quite a positive time for
the Chilean telecom market and we have several
projects in the pipeline. Since two frequency
auctions were successfully completed, we are now
very busy with the installation phase.
The same can be said about Peru with the arrival

of a new player - Entel - that has recently acquired
Nextel and a subsequent growth in projects.
Image courtesy of AJ Ingenieros

Both markets went from the legal phase of auctions
solution to ensure we deliver products within which we have been partnering with for several and bids to the executional phase which for us
budget. years. We use them for certain services such as site correspond with a very active and promising
acquisition, installation and drive tests. time. That said, the volume of business we are
TowerXchange: Are contracts in Latin America able to generate very much depends on how the
typically just for the manufacture and supply However, its important to note that we resort to market responds to new offerings. 4G LTE is a new
of towers, or are they end-to-end turnkey outsourced partners when and if needed as we are technology and the demand for it will set the pace
projects from manufacture to installation and able to offer all these services in-house. When the for our workload.
maintenance? demand for services peaks, we employ our team
first and then contract trusted external companies Beside Chile and Peru, we see very good
Francisco Briceo, Vice President, Operations, AJ for projects we cannot fully cover with our own opportunities in Colombia due to its size and
Ingenieros: We do work with some subcontractors employees. demand growth

Special feature:
Africa migrates to the independent

tower business model
When we launched TowerXchange two years ago, independent towercos owned
just 10% of Africas towers, and they were still viewed with both interest and
caution by investors and by the infrastructure and M&A strategists at Africas
leading MNOs.
Just two years later, and the African tower industry has achieved launch
velocity the rate of growth is so substantial that it seems nothing can stop it
reaching scale, and MNOs and investors are all eager to get a piece of the action.
The 17% of towers currently owned or operated by towercos will rise to almost
40% by the end of 2014, driven by Airtels imminent sale of all 15,000 African
towers, which in turn has triggered several other tower portfolios to come to
market.
In this special feature, TowerXchange updates and consolidates our African

market sizing data and forecasts, placing them alongside a preview of the Airtel
tower deal. The Airtel transaction is interesting because it includes attractive
portfolios in proven towerco markets, and more frontiersy markets where the
towerco business model has not yet taken root. We analyse markets at either end
of the spectrum of the Airtel deal; the sought-after Nigerian towers, and the more
challenging, but potentially rewarding, towers in Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger.
Dont miss:
82 TowerXchanges market size and growth forecasts for the African
tower industry
89 A preview of Airtels African tower sale
93 BMI and Mott MacDonald take a closer look at the tower markets in
Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger
98 The changing shape of the Nigerian tower industry
100 How Hotspot Network built a portfolio of 100 towers in Nigeria

TowerXchanges market
The African independent tower market is led, and
will continue to be led, by the Big Four African
towercos; IHS (10,500 towers), American Tower
size and growth forecasts for (5,099 towers in Africa), Helios Towers Africa (4,851)
and Eaton Towers (2,500), supplemented by a couple
the African tower industry

of significant West African regional towercos,
Helios Towers Nigeria (1,300) and SWAP Telecoms
& Technologies (1,459). See Figure 1. TowerXchange
African tower industry achieves launch velocity are also tracking half a dozen or so African middle
market towercos, although none yet has a tower
25,000 towers are already owned, or managed and count into quadruple-digits.
marketed, by Africas independent towercos, representing
17% of the Africas estimated 150,000 towers. There are Its not just the proportion of towers owned by
currently 38,500 towers for sale in Africa, with a major towercos that make the African tower industry
deal involving Airtels 15,000 African towers expected so important, its the fact that the independent
imminently. By the end of the year, Africas independent towercos assets are among the most bankable
towercos will own more towers than MTN TowerXchange infrastructure assets in sub-Saharan Africa, yielding
forecast that towercos will own 38.8% of Africas towers at proven, relatively low risk revenues over long term
the end of 2014. contracts with investment grade anchor tenants.
Keywords: Editorial, Towercos, Research, Deal Structure, Market

The separation of telecoms infrastructure from the
Overview, Valuation, Investment, Market Forecasts, First Mover retail risk contained within the mobile network
Advantage, Bankability, Pass-Through, SLA, Joint Venture, Sale operator is rewarded by relative favorable relative
& Leaseback, Operational Lease, Infrastructure Sharing, Africa, multiple arbitrage investment into African tower
IHS, American Tower, Helios Towers Africa, Eaton Towers, Helios companies values some at fifteen to twenty times
Towers Nigeria, SWAP Telecoms and Technologies EBITDA. Meanwhile mobile network operators
By Kieron Osmotherly, CEO, TowerXchange
divesting their towers benefit from the opportunity
to release cash and pay down debts or invest in new
Read this article to learn: technologies, and/or stabilise opex, while refocusing
< The current size and forecast growth of the independent tower market in Africa on their core business of selling airtime, improving
< Who are the main players and where are they active the customer experience and developing value
< Transactions to date and the cost per tower paid added services.
< Where the next African tower transactions will take place
< The implications for towercos, investors, MNOs and suppliers TowerXchange are often asked, for what multiple of
TCF (Tower Cash Flow) are African towers changing

Figure 1: Estimated number of towers owned or managed by towercos in Africa Figure 1a: Count differentiating towers
that are owned from those that are
managed and marketed by towercos
550 719 1946
2002 1903 1194
Source:
TowerXchange
hands? Unfortunately, with only one publicly listed sale of MTNs prized 9-10,000 Nigerian towers,
towerco in Africa, TCF data, lease rate and lease Etisalats tower sale in Nigeria, and the continuing
term information is not readily available rightly so, restructuring of the ownership and management of
its competitively sensitive! Thus we have to resort Oranges African tower assets.
to cost per tower as a very crude indication of value 5099
figure 3 consolidates what data is available in the Where once upon a time, at the beginning of
public domain. Digest this particular table with this decade, Daniel Lee was pitching a relatively
caution the value of a tower is a function of the unproven African independent towerco business
existing tenancy ratio, structural capacity, lease back model to a shallow pool of prospective early
rate and lease term, so looking at dollars per tower investors, now it can seem that there is more
in isolation tells only a fragment of the story. capital chasing towercos than there are investible
opportunities.
Investors appetite for African towers
An estimated US$1.6bn of capital has been pumped The biggest challenge for towercos is no longer
into tower transactions in Africa to date, and twice raising capital. Its no longer a battle to convince
that amount could be spent in the next year, driven management teams at operators to release the
by Airtels sale of 15,000 towers, the potential value locked in their towers, because while first

Figure 2: African towerco footprints
Figure 3: Cost per tower, a crude
measure of value
Year Deal Country Cost
2010 Millicom / Tigo + Helios Ghana $120k
2010 Vodafone + Eaton Ghana ?
2010 Cell C + ATC* South Africa $307k
2010 MTN + ATC Ghana $228k
2010 Starcomms + SWAP Nigeria $214k
2010 Millicom / Tigo + Helios DRC $103k
Source: TowerXchange 2011 Millicom / Tigo + Helios Tanzania $131k
2011 MTN + ATC Uganda $175k
2012 Orange + Eaton Uganda ?
2012 Warid + Eaton Uganda ?
2012 MTN + IHS Cameroon $173k
2012 MTN + IHS Cote dIvoire $151k
Cameroon &
2013 Orange + IHS ?
Cote dIvoire
mover advantage may be largely a myth in terms new local towerco opcos; to concurrently close Orange / Telkom Kenya
2013 Kenya ?
+ Eaton
of the impact of bringing towers to market first on one deal while conducting due diligence on the
2013 Vodacom + Helios Tanzania $86k
valuations, there certainly seems to be last mover next; in the meantime securing the next tranche
disadvantage, and nobody wants to be left with fast- of investment; while at the same time structuring Rwanda &
2013 MTN + IHS ?
Zambia
depreciating assets stranded on their balance sheet. programmes to optimise the site level profitability of
the assets theyve already acquired. * Cell C deal included 1,400 towers plus additional towers
under construction
The biggest challenge for towercos is simply to keep So, if youre frustrated because you cant get the
up; to develop and recruit scarce talent to manage CTO or CEO of a towerco on the phone to pitch your Source: TowerXchange

Figure 4: Africas biggest tower sharing transactions to date
Publicly stated
Year Operator Country TowerCo Est. # of towers Deal structure
purchase price
2010 Millicom / Tigo Ghana Helios 750 $54m for 60% Joint venture
2010 Vodafone Ghana Eaton 750 Not applicable Operational lease
2010 Cell C South Africa American 1,400* $430m Sale and leaseback
2010 MTN Ghana American 1,876 $218.5m for 51% Joint venture
2010 Starcomms Nigeria SWAP 407 $81m Sale and leaseback
2010 Millicom / Tigo DRC Helios 729 $45m for 60% Joint venture
2011 Millicom / Tigo Tanzania Helios 1,020 $80m for 60%** Joint venture
2011 MTN Uganda American 1,000 $89m for 51% Joint venture
2012 Orange Uganda Eaton 300 Unknown Sale and leaseback
2012 Warid Uganda Eaton 400 Unknown Sale and leaseback
2012 MTN Cameroon IHS Africa 827 $143m Sale and leaseback
2012 MTN Cote dIvoire IHS Africa 931 $141m Sale and leaseback
2013 Orange Cameroon & Cote dIvoire IHS Africa 2,000+ Unknown Managed services
2013 Orange/Telkom Kenya Kenya Eaton 1,000+ Unknown Managed services
2013 Vodacom Tanzania Helios 1,149 Approx $75mn for 75.5% Joint venture
2013 MTN Rwanda & Zambia IHS 1,269 Unknown Sale and leaseback
*Cell C deal included 1,400 existing towers plus additional towers under construction
**Millicom/Tigos stake in Helios Towers Tanzania reduced to 24.5% after Helios acquired towers from Vodacom Tanzania in 2013
companys proposition, try hanging about in the logistics outsourced, the towerco management team a backdrop of strict Service Level Agreements that
departure lounge of one of Africas hub airports, still has to steer the business through substantial impose harsh financial penalties if uptime drops
because these guys are clocking up the air miles in operational challenges, ranging from the evaluation below targets that are often substantially higher
pursuit of the next deal! and upgrade of structures for multiple tenants, than had been achieved within the portfolio pre-
to improving visibility and accountability within sale.
Operational challenges the O&M supply chain and evolving from reactive
While most towercos are very lean enterprises, with to predictive maintenance, and combating fuel However, with few exceptions, anchor tenants
much of the construction, maintenance and energy theft. These operational battles are fought against and co-location tenants report satisfaction with

Figure 5: African tower industry achieves launch velocity Is the balance of power shifting from MNOs to
towercos?
End of Year Est total # of Est # of African towers % of African Yes, the balance of power is shifting insofar as if
towers in Africa owned or operated by towers owned by you want to sell equipment and services for telecom
towercos towercos towers, an ever-increasing proportion of those
towers are transferring from operator-captive to
2009 120,000 100 0.001% owned and/or managed by independent towercos.
And the sale of assets is typically accompanied by
an extensive build-to-suit programme, so whether
2010 125,000 6,000 4.7%
you focus on legacy towers or greenfield new builds,
towercos are becoming your most important clients
2011 130,000 9,000 6.9% in Africa.
2012 140,000 16,661 11.9% But no, the growing scale of the African
independent tower sector is not likely to result in
unchecked increases of lease rates. Lease rates have
2013 150,000 *25,510 17% declined and stabilised in Africa since the early days
when a tenancy in downtown Lagos could fetch
2014(f) 165,000 *64,000 38.8% US$7,000 per month. And the tower industry is kept
honest by the simple fact that if the cost of leasing a
tower becomes too high, mobile network operators
2015(f) 180,000 *84,500 46.9%
would resume building their own sites. Fierce
*Includes an estimate of the number of towers owned by a small but growing segment of regional middle market towercos
competition between towercos in several markets
also serves to keep lease rates fair, ensuring value
the quality of service they receive from tower which leave energy largely in the hands of the for towerco investors, for tower tenants, and
companies in most cases uptime targets are being tenant, are falling out of favour in sub-Saharan ultimately for African mobile subscribers.
met and exceeded, and it seldom takes many weeks Africa, and TowerXchange would be surprised to
to add a new tenant to a tower, so it seems Africas see any deals closed this year with a power pass What next?
towercos are getting to grips with the operational through clause (with the possible exception of TowerXchange forecasts that the independent
challenges. South Africa, where we are not forecasting a tower towerco sector in Africa will more than double
transaction until 2015). To date, only American in size to a tower count of 64,000 by the end of
What makes many emerging market towercos Tower has made substantial use of power pass 2014, increasing again to 84,500 by the end of
unique is that the traditional steel and grass throughs in their African transactions, with power the following year see figure 5. Figures 6 and 7
business model is supplemented by a substantial pass through clauses in effect at ATC Ghana, Uganda show where tower transactions have taken place
energy logistics play. Power pass through contracts, and South Africa. and where we anticipate them taking place in the

coming year. The current explosive growth of the Figure 6: TowerXchange tower transaction heat map: current state
tower industry will slow from late 2015 as the
tower companies will have acquired assets from
the majority of tier one African operators.
The implications? If you have aspirations to build

a towerco of scale in Africa, then your time is
running out. It may be better to acquire than bid
against Africas Big Four, who are largely seen
as the only credible bidders for African tower
portfolios of scale. However, TowerXchange
is picking up the early signals of an emerging
middle market of regional and frontier-market
towercos, targeting markets too small or perceived
as too risky to attract the Big Four, or leveraging
relationships with local RAN Planners and Rollout
Programme Managers to target build-to-suit
opportunities.
Legend
While universally acknowledged to be a lumpy No tower transaction completed or rumoured
business, most African towerco business plans are Either rumours of a tower transaction
broadly on track. Tenancy ratios are approaching (unconfirmed), or the country is known to be
the magic number of 1.8 in several markets, on at least one towercos hit list, or there is
a registered Africa Towers subsidiary in the
great news for towercos and their investors, with
country
the promise that this may unlock more capital
Rumours of a potential tower transaction have
intensive, longer term payback investments to been confirmed by TowerXchange
improve site level profitability. If 2014 and early Tower transaction believed to be imminent
2015 is best described as a land-grab period for One or more tower transactions have taken
the African tower industry, from late 2015 a period place, no more transactions expected
of consolidation is likely to commence if for no imminently
other reason than by then, the majority of the most One or more tower transactions have taken
desirable tower portfolios, associated with credit place, more transactions are expected
imminently
worthy prospective anchor tenants, will have been
transferred from operator-captive to Africas Big
Four towercos Source: TowerXchange

Figure 7: TowerXchange tower transaction heat map: end of 2014 forecast Have you missed one of
the past seven editions
of TowerXchange?
1
2
Standard Bank: aggressive bids likely to continue
Tower Xchange Helios take you inside the due diligence process
Whos who: turnkey infrastructure and law firms

Africas New telecoms infrastructure journal
TowerPower: reducing Africas reliance on diesel
3
ISSUE 2 | FEBRUARY 2013 | www.towerxchange.com
Why IHS invested in Cameroon and Cote dIvoire
Tower Xchange Eaton CTO Thomas Jonells procurement priorities
4
Egypts 4 companies licensed to lease infrastructure
The front lines of the African Tower Industry

Growth stock ATC vs the PE-backed towercos
ISSUE 3 | April 2013 | www.towerxchange.com
Whos who in the telecoms infrastructure supply chain
Tower Xchange
5
6
ISSUE 4 | June 2013 | www.towerxchange.com
Dont miss TowerXchanges checklist of the data you need to buy and sell
< Vodacom andtowers
Etisalats tower strategy
Tower Xchange
Tower Xchange
Marc Rennard: Why Orange is sharing towers
< HTN, SWAP and BMI on the Nigerian tower market < MTNs tower strategy in Rwanda and Zambia
< Tanzania case study with exclusive HTA interview

< Tower deal news from Egypt, Mali, Senegal & Rwanda
< TowerCo of Madagascar, FTS and Eaton interviews
< Whos whos in Managed Services, RMS & TowerPower
Structuring deals to meet the requirements of each affiliate
ISSUE 5 | September 2013 | www.towerxchange.com
< A closer look at Telkom Kenyas deal with Eaton
Top 200 decision makers in African towers invited to TowerXchange Meetup Tower Xchange
African tower market heats upTower Xchange

TowerXchange maps past, current and future tower transactions
Legend
ISSUE 6 | December 2013 | www.towerxchange.com
The drivers of SBA

Communications
Join 200 African tower decision makers at the TowerXchange Meetup Tower expansion
Lets meet up!
Xchange
No tower transaction completed or rumoured

Exclusive interview with Kurt Bagwell,
Top 200 decision makersPresident
in African Towers converge
- International, at TowerXchange Meetup
SBA Communications
TowerXchange Africa:
Either rumours of a tower transaction < Airtels 15,000 African towers may be sold country by country
< The risks and rewards of operating towers in DRC
TowerXchange forecasts the growth of African towercos from 23k towers today to 54k by the end of 2014
< Rural infraco pioneers Connect Africa and AMN
Tower Xchange
(unconfirmed), or the country is known to be

< Insights and images from the TowerXchange Meetup Africa
TowerXchange Americas:
on at least one towercos hit list, or there is

< Brazil case study: 9,000 new towers needed for World Cup
< Accelerating new tower construction - the Lei das Antennas
< Brazils Ministry of Communications view of the tower industry
< LatAm transactions to date, plus new deals by AMT and SBAC
a registered Africa Towers subsidiary in the TowerXchange extends our coverage to include Africa and the Americas! Tower Xchange
country
Rumours of a potential tower transaction have
been confirmed by TowerXchange For a limited period, you can download back
Tower transaction believed to be imminent issues FREE at:
One or more tower transactions have taken www.towerxchange.com/publications
place, no more transactions expected
Ensure you have the entire back catalogue of
imminently
TowerXchange, which provides a record of
One or more tower transactions have taken
emerging market tower industry evolution, and
place, more transactions are expected
acomprehensive index of proven solution and service
imminently
providers in Africa, LatAm and Asia.
Source: TowerXchange

A preview of Airtels African
Airtels long rumored sale of all 15,000 of their
African towers is nearing completion. Some TMT
news outlets have announced the structure of the
tower sale deal but, having spoken to the CEOs of Africas

towercos, TowerXchange can confirm that those
reports are premature and that the final shape of
Portfolios for sale in proven and unproven tower markets will change the
the transaction is yet to be determined.
characteristics of the acquiring towercos
Nonetheless, heres what we do know. Airtel
Figure 1: Proportion of sites on the Airtel network running 3G is prepared to sell off their 15,000 towers in
digestible chunks rather as one single portfolio.
Commentary: While there will be fierce competition for Airtels
< Although Airtel states that they have 17,792 sites on their towers in proven tower markets, there may have
10,869
network, after the deduction of co-locations, the total number of been only one bidder in some of the less proven
sites for sale is believed to be closer to 15,000 tower markets, giving rise to a question as to
< 3G antennas mounted on 39% of Airtels towers indicates a whether Airtels valuation will be met in each
substantial opportunity to secure amendment revenue for country. Certainly, as operators of Africa Towers
6,923
acquiring towercos as anchor tenant Airtel continues their 3G and shareholders in Bharti Infratel, Airtel has the
rollout in many countries expertise to retain any assets that do not attract
a bid above a nominal reserve price. However,
it seems likely that most of Airtels Africa towers
Keywords: News, MNOs, Towercos, Research, Deal Structure, Acquisition, 3G, First Mover Advantage, Bankability, will be sold.
Pass-Through, ARPU, Country Risk, Anchor Tenant, Sale & Leaseback, Private Equity, Infrastructure Sharing,
Africa, Burkina Faso, Chad, Congo Brazzaville, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Gabon, Kenya, Madagascar,
Most commentators agree that IHS, Helios Towers
Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, IHS Africa, Helios Towers
Africa, Eaton Towers and Helios Towers Nigeria
Africa, Helios Towers Nigeria, Eaton Towers, Airtel
are all bidding for the segments of the Airtel
portfolio that attract their interest, and it seems
Read this article to learn: that American Tower is not participating in the
< Some headline KPIs concerning Airtels African towers process. This could be a due to a combination of
< The potential impact of the Airtel tower transaction on the characteristics of Africas four biggest PE- Airtel wanting to shed responsibility for energy
backed towercos logistics while American Tower prefers a power
< Why American Towers may not be participating in the process pass through clause, or it could be a reflection
< Differentiating between the assets in frontiersy and established tower markets
of American Towers finite appetite for the
country risk present in many of Airtels operating
< A closer look at Tanzania as an example
countries. It could simply be that American Tower

prefers to deploy capital in the US domestic, Figure 2: Subscriber growth on the Airtel network
LatAm and European markets.
80
Airtel has not appointed a banker adviser, but 70

reports suggest they are handling the transaction
efficiently themselves, with the process 60
proceeding broadly in line with their ambitious
target timeline lets put it this way, we expect to 50
be writing an analysis of a completed Airtel tower
40
sale in the Summer edition of the TowerXchange
66.38m 68.3m 69.44m
Journal! 63.12m 64.2m
30
Frontier market towers 20

If, as rumoured, one tower company acquires
the towers in the majority of countries shown 10
in figure 5, where local RAN Planners and
Rollout Managers are not used to co-locations on March 2013 June 2013 Sept 2013 Dec 2013 March 2014
independent towers being available, then that
tower company is going to look more frontiersy Figure 3: ARPU running through the Airtel network
to prospective future investors and strategic
partners. Dont misunderstand our analysis 6 $5.9
taking on a frontiersy portfolio may not be a $5.8
bad thing weve often seen an exaggerated $5.7
initial uptake of tenancies after the first tower
transaction in a market as pent up demand for
co-locations is unlocked. However, to date Africas
towercos have only proved the efficacy of the
business model in some of the more obviously
attractive markets such as Nigeria, Ghana, $5.5 $5.5
Tanzania and South Africa, so whichever towerco
acquires Airtels towers in their frontier markets
is going to have an evangelical mission to promote
the virtues of tower sharing to tenants and
regulators alike. 5
While there will doubtless be many local March 2013 June 2013 Sept 2013 Dec 2013 March 2014

Figure 4: Exponential growth in data on Airtels network (data shown in millions of MB) The sale of Airtels towers in Tanzania and DRC
will doubtless have piqued the interest of Helios
Towers Africa, which already has very successful
8,000
operations in both countries, while it will be
interesting to see how IHS responds to the sale of
7,000 Airtels towers in Rwanda and Zambia, following
so hard on the heels of their acquisition of all
6,000 1,269 of MTNs towers in those countries.
5,000 Exponents of the independent tower business

model unsurprisingly but rightly advocate that
only one or at the most two towercos should
4,000
operate in any given emerging market country,
in order for to creates the best opportunities to
3,000 6,411 exploit economies of scale. For example, Ray
5,383
2,000 4,215
Figure 6: Estimated breakdown of the
3,003 3,140 ownership of Tanzanian towers
1,000
240
March 2013 June 2013 Sept 2013 Dec 2013 March 2014
1,400
stakeholders to win over in markets like Burkina Will the Airtel transaction stimulate
2,449
Faso, Chad and Niger, with a rapid mobile competition among towercos in established
subscriber growth from a low base and positive markets, or reinforce the market leadership of
GDP growth, the runway for long term growth is first movers?
tremendous. As well see in the subsequent BMI 711
and Mott MacDonald analyses, Airtel are not The other side of the Airtel tower sale may attract
the only credit worthy tenant in these markets, several bidders to the process. The crown jewel
Helios Towers Tanzania (acquired from
but there are challenges to be overcome, not in SSA African telecoms is Nigeria, which means
Millicom-Tigo and Vodacom)
the least of which being energy logistics in towers assets in that country are sure to be in
Zantel (believed to be for sale)
countries with less than 15% electrification, and great demand. Well look more closely at the
Airtel
the unpredictability of regulations in a countries Nigerian market later in this special feature.
Others
characterised by volatile domestic politics.

Figure 5: Airtel s towers are include countries that are both proven and unproven OShea of Tanzanian O&M subcontractor NEWL
tower markets explained the impact of Helios Towers Africa
entering Tanzania: where once we had dedicated
teams for each operator, and field engineers
spent a large proportion of their time on the road,
now our model is regional, with each local team
looking after a cluster of 20-25 towers for a mix of
operators.
Conclusion
The sale of Airtels African towers will redefine
the landscape for Africas four largest PE-backed
independent towercos. Some of them, probably
one of them, will take on a more frontiersy
character, but if the acquisition of assets in
markets with significant country risk is reflected
in the purchase price, it can still be a good
deal. Other tower companies may have their
first mover advantage in proven tower markets
reinforced with supplemental acquisitions,
or they may find themselves facing fierce
competition.
However, TowerXchanges main conclusion is
that this is a highly investible, attractive portfolio
of tower assets; its early days for mobile data in
Africa, but the number of MBs of data running
through the Airtel network has more than
Countries where Airtel is active and there is NO doubled in a year, and Airtel are a savvy and
existing independent tower market of scale credit-worthy anchor tenant -a good business
Countries where Airtel is active and there is an partner for towercos. The PE-backed towercos
existing independent tower market are going to emerge from the Airtel transaction
Countries where Airtel is not active significantly closer to achieving scale, so the door
for new market entrant towercos to come into
Africa via any method other than acquisition may
be closing

In Burkina Faso, ARCE (Autorte de Regulton
Share Square: Burkina Faso des Communctons Electronques), the
national regulator, shares very limited
information on its current and future position
with respect to tower sharing. According to
MM (Mott MacDonald) analysis, there is some
Active
inter-operator sharing in Niger, with one

3 MNOs: Telemob, Airtel, Telecel. operator sharing less than 1 per cent of its
Fourth to be licensed soon?
sites and the other almost one-third.
Current Sharing
Subscriber penetration at 69.4%,

but 3G penetration low at 0.47%. 3G
licences to be issued to all operators Burkina Faso has an average mobile
Passive
soon? No activity regarding LTE. penetration rate for SSA 69.4% at y/e 2013.
Sharing not mandated by regulator All three mobile operators were granted a 3G
although some sharing is taking place
Burkina
according to MM analysis.
license in February 2012. There were zero
Faso mobile broadband subscribers at the end of
2012 3G services were launched in 2013. A
None
tender for a converged network, including

3G, was launched by ARCE on 25 April 2013.
However, no decision has yet been delivered
3G 4G by ARCE.
Technology Deployment
In November 2013, Swiss owned YooMee
Opportunity for TowerCo entry with Opportunity for Outsourcing Limited opportunity for new
Africa indicated that it may be targeting
focus on high Lease Up Rate (LUR) by MNO to TowerCo entrant TowerCo
Burkina Faso for the rollout of TDD LTE
Technology. It partnered with Alcatel-
Burkina Faso Mobile Operators Burkina Faso has a population of 17.2 million and is served by 3 Lucent to expand operations in West and
mobile network operators: Airtel (Bharti Airtel), Telemob (Onatel) Central Africa through the rollout of wireless
and Telecel (Planor afrique). With 11.9 million mobile subscribers,
24.5% Telemob broadband services based on TDD LTE
penetration stands at 69.4%. Across the three mobile operators two
38.9% technology. However, no information has
Airtel are dominant:
been located to suggest any availability of LTE
Telecel < Telemob had 4.6m subscribers at y/e 2013 (38.9% market share)
in the country
36.6% < Airtel had 4.4m subscribers at y/e 2013 (36.6% market share)
< Telecel had 2.9m subscribers at y/e 2013 (24.5% market share)
Sources: MM analysis, GSMA, TeleGeography, ARM

Share Square: Niger
The Multisectoral Regulatory Authority or (ARM)
is responsible for telecommunications within
Niger. ARM have indicated an impending decree
to harmonize infrastructure sharing (passive
and active), but they are still in the process of
ratification. The decree defines the rules and
the principles of sharing telecommunication
Active
infrastructure. This aims to avoid duplication

4 MNOs: Airtel, Orange, Moov, SahelCom
of infrastructure, allow easy deployment of
Subscriber penetration low at 23.0%, and
3G penetration very low at 0.27%. No telecommunications services and networks,
Current Sharing
activity regarding LTE. promote competition and ensure compliance with

The local regulatory authority has essential requirements, namely the protection of the
Passive
developed a decree to harmonize

infrastructure sharing (passive and active) environment and report of urban planning and land
and it is in the process of ratification. use. According to MM (Mott MacDonald) analysis
Some tower sharing is taking place sharing between operators is low ranging from 5%
Niger amongst operators.
7% of their sites on other operators.
None
Mobile penetration is very low Niger 23% at y/e

2013. In 2011 the Ministry of Communications
announced that it wanted to establish 3G and
3G 4G invited firms to apply for the first two licences.
However, to date, only Orange appears to have any
Technology Deployment 3G subscribers. According to the World Bank, the
Opportunity for TowerCo entry with Opportunity for Outsourcing Limited opportunity for new
Government aims to have 72% of the population
focus on high Lease Up Rate (LUR) by MNO to TowerCo entrant TowerCo covered by mobile by 2015 but it is not clear how it
intends to achieve this.
Niger Mobile Operators Niger has a population of 18.2 million and is served by 4 mobile
ARM recently stated, in a study led by MM, that
7% network operators: Airtel (Bharti Airtel), Moov (Etisalat), SahelCom
Airtel there is no program for LTE/4G licensing at the
(Sonitel) and Orange. With 4.2 million mobile subscribers, penetration
14.5% moment but operators are expressing their desire to
Orange stands at 23.0%. Across the four mobile operators two are dominant:
44.2% roll out LTE for fixed broadband application (WLL).
< Airtel had 1.9m subscribers at y/e 2013 (44.2% market share)
Moov To date, there appears to be little activity with
34.3% < Orange had 1.4m subscribers at y/e 2013 (34.3% market share)
regard to LTE
SahelCom < Moov had 0.6m subscribers at y/e 2013 (14.5% market share)
< SahelCom 0.3m subscribers at y/e 2013 (7.0% market share)
Sources: MM analysis, GSMA, TeleGeography, ARM

Burkina Faso, Chad
Generating Interest
Before the second half of 2013, Africa-focused
tower firms and their suppliers took a long-term
and Niger view of possible expansion into Burkina Faso,

Chad and Niger. That view changed significantly
in the months following the announcements by
Guest columnist Kenechi Okeleke looks at three countries where Airtel and
Airtel and Etisalat that they planned to outsource
Etisalat are considering outsourcing their towers the management of mobile towers owned by their
respective subsidiaries across Africa, including the
Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger offer strong expansion three landlocked West African nations. Airtel is
opportunities for independent tower firms considering present in all three markets while Etisalat operates
the level of mobile competition and the prospect of in Burkina Faso and Niger through Atlantique
subscriptions growth in each of the countries. But Telecom.
are the risks worth the efforts and investment? BMI
The markets also play host to at least one other
highlights some risks that tower firms and their
international operator. Orange and Tigo, both of
suppliers must consider in their bids to enter those
which have adopted tower sharing services in
countries.
other African markets, operate in Niger and Chad
respectively, while Maroc Telecom is active in
Keywords: Research, Market Overview, Investment, Burkina Faso. Maroc Telecom is set to take over the
Market Forecasts, ARPU, Regulation, Country Risk, Off- operations of Atlantique Telecom on the back of
Grid, Solar, BMI Analysis, Infrastructure Sharing, Africa, Etisalats acquisition of Vivendis 53% stake in the
Moroccan incumbent.
Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger, Airtel, Etisalat, Atlantique
Telecom, Orange, Tigo, Maroc Telecom, Vivendi, Business
The risks are high...
Monitor International
Kenechi Okeleke, Senior Analyst, BMI An assessment of the risks associated with
operating in either or all of the three markets
under consideration underscore the seeming
Read this article to learn: reluctance of tower firms to enter the markets just
< Risks: <15% electrification, low population density and low ARPUs yet. But as operators give serious thought to tower
< The nature of potential security threats from Al-Qaeda and Boko Haram sharing services, we believe the time is right for
< Domestic political volatility tower firms and their suppliers to identify these
< Opportunities: multiple MNOs with fierce competition and a long runway for subscriber growth risks and formulate strategies to manage them if
< Encouraging macroeconomic growth they are to take advantage of the long term growth
opportunities in the entire sub-region.

Access to power - With less than 15% electrification Chad
rate in all three countries, according to the World
Real GDP growth
Niger
Bank, tower firms will have to rely on alternative
12 Burkina Faso
sources of electricity to power cell sites, especially
those in rural areas where the majority of the
population live. Network operators have largely 10
relied on diesel generators, but these assets are
Percentage
expensive to maintain and are partially responsible 8
for thin operating margins and sluggish expansion
of network coverage to underserved areas. BMI
6
believes that renewable and potentially cheaper
sources such solar will receive strong attention as
new towers are built in more remote areas. The 4
three countries are located in the Sahel and benefit
from year round sunshine. 2
2011 2012 2013e 2014f 2015f 2016f 2017f 2018f
Population density - This is another factor
weighing on universal access in the three countries. can be mitigated by potentially high tenancy ratios, Niger and Chad share a border with north-east
Burkina Faso fares better than its neighbours in especially for tower firms operating as a monopoly Nigeria, where the increasingly violent Boko
this regard with a population per square kilometre or with significant first mover advantage. Haram group operates. Boko Harams terrorist
of 61.8 at YE13, according to BMI data, compared activities are causing floods of refugees to cross
to Chad and Niger at 10 and 14.1, respectively. Security - The three countries lie in a volatile into the south of Niger and Chad, and although
Although this factor increases the likelihood region, with terrorist threats from Islamist groups the terrorist group appears not to be interested in
that tower firms will be obligated to deploy new, such as Al- Qaeda in the Maghreb in north and widening its aims to encompass its neighbours as
strategically located towers for optimum network Boko Haram from the south. The war in Mali in well, authorities in the region are worried that it
coverage, we also highlight the fact that it makes a 2013, when French and Nigerien troops helped could soon broaden its remit. Should Boko Haram
strong case for tower sharing by operators in order the Bamako government to recapture the north begin to operate in Niger and Chad, we believe
to avoid unnecessary duplications. from Islamist and separatist elements, spilled over the local authorities in those countries would be
into Niger, with terror attacks taking place in the hard-pressed to contain the insurgents. Regional
ARPUs - Mobile ARPUs in the three countries are military town of Agadez, and another targeting the powerhouse economy Nigeria has thus far failed
low by regional standards at less than US$5. We Areva uranium mine at Arlit, as direct reprisals to curb the violence, and Niger and Chads security
forecast ARPUs to trend further downwards as for its involvement in the conflict. The threat of services have limited capacity to do so.
operators extend services to rural areas. This will be terrorism in the north is extremely costly, not
a major consideration in the negotiation of tenancy only to the Nigerien government, but also firms Politics - The next presidential elections in Burkina
rates on independent tower sites. That said, this risk operating there. Faso are scheduled to take place in November

Chad change in policy from the new government, which
Mobile Subscriptions (Thousands) will be headed by Kalzeubet Pahimi Deubet.
Niger
20,000 However, we doubt that the appointment of Deubet
Burkina Faso
will meaningfully address popular or opposition
concerns. The structural threats to Chads economic
system are growing, and the new prime minister
15,000 will face the challenge of managing an increasingly
restive governing party. Real power in Chad rests
with President Dby, meaning that the overall
direction of policy is unlikely to change.
10,000
...But could be worth the effort
The presence of multiple operators and relatively
high level of competition between them in each of
5,000 the three markets is arguably the most important
factor stimulating investor interest. A pioneer tower
firm with first mover advantage in one or more of
these markets is almost certain to record strong
tenancy and site revenue ratios.
2011 2012 2013 2014f 2015f 2016f 2017f 2018f
2015. Political tensions are already rising as it looks have been free and fair. However, the country is Other notable factors include the expected
increasingly likely that President Blaise Compaor prone to military coups, a trait in common with endorsement of tower sharing services by
will attempt to amend the constitution in order the rest of the region. Issoufous election came the respective telecoms regulators, especially
to serve another term in office, possibly through after a year-long military junta ousted President if it promises to extend network coverage to
the holding of a referendum on the matter. Public Mamaduo Tandja in 2010, and any perceived underserved areas, and the potential for sustained
protests against this move have intensified across failure to produce inclusive growth could lead to an subscriptions growth in those markets over the
the country. However, Burkina Faso lies in an overthrow of the government by either the people medium to long term. In Niger, the telecoms
extremely volatile region politically, and many will or the army. regulator, Multisectoral Regulatory Authority (ARM),
be happy for the known Compaor to continue in has sponsored a decree to harmonise infrastructure
office. The president won more than 80% of the vote Domestic politics in Chad are equally volatile as sharing (passive and active), although this is
in 2010. highlighted by a revolt within the ruling party in awaiting ratification.
November 2013, which cut short Joseph Djimrangar
In Niger, the current government under President Dadnadjis troubled premiership. BMI believes In terms of subscriptions growth, Chad and Nigers
Mahamadou Issoufou was elected in 2011 that the transition was managed by long-serving mobile penetration rates are among the lowest in
elections deemed by international observers to President Idriss Dby Itno, and we expect little Africa, at 36.8% and 34.8% respectively at YE13,

The changing shape of the
according to BMI data. Although Burkina Faso has
a much higher penetration rate of 72.1% at the end
of the same period, we project it to rise to 96% by
2018, equivalent to net addition of around 6.5mn
subscriptions over our five-year forecast period. Nigerian tower industry
Beyond the telecoms market dynamics, the TowerXchange forecasts that 84% of Nigerias towers will be owned and operated
macroeconomic outlook for Burkina Faso, Chad and by independent towercos by the end of 2014
Niger is encouraging, at least in terms of headline
growth and potential for increased economic TowerXchange thought wed take another look Glo, who are not reputed to be big fans of sale and
activities. Burkina Faso has been the fastest-growing at the Nigerian tower industry in the light of the leaseback transactions, seem unlikely to divest their
economy in the five-member Union Economique potential transfer of an estimated Nigerian 18,000 assets, while many of the towers belonging to the
et Montaire Ouest- Africaine (UEMOA) currency towers from operator-captive to independent former CDMA operators, now consolidated into
bloc over the past five years. From 2009 to 2013, towercos before the end of 2014. If Hotspot Capcom, were sold several years ago. According
annual real GDP growth in Burkina Faso averaged Networks example is typical, showing the cost a a to BMIs analysis of the Nigerian market in
6.3%. The closest any of the other five members Nigerian cell site to be around US$236k, then the TowerXchange, SWAP sealed an US$81.4mn sale
came to matching this was Niger, where growth replacement value of the tower assets coming to and leaseback deal with Starcomms in December
averaged 5.4% over the same period. Over the next market in Nigeria would be around US$4.25bn. 2010 for 407 of the CDMA operators 557 towers.

decade we expect Burkina Faso to remain a regional
outperformer in terms of economic expansion, with Nigeria is critical to the profitability of Africas tier
real GDP growth averaging 6.9% between 2014 and one MNOs, who seem to have reached a consensus
2018. that their tower assets are no longer a source of
competitive differentiation either that, or they
The growth of Nigers extractive industries will simply dont want their towers to become stranded Airtels Nigerian towers are to be
be one of the primary forces behind GDP growth, assets on their balance sheet as their competitors sold as part of their pan-African
which we forecast to average 6.3% between 2014 sell! tower deal. The process to sell
and 2018. The country is a major uranium exporter,
and investment into new mines, and continued
uranium exports, will support growth despite a
fall in global uranium prices. For its part, Chads
headline growth will reach 9.6% in 2014, according
to BMI data, owing to a brief increase in oil
Airtels Nigerian towers are to be sold as part of
their pan-African tower deal. The process to sell
MTNs towers has been under way for several
months. And Etisalat appointed advisors at the turn
of the year with a view to divesting their Nigerian
MTNs towers has been under way
for several months. And Etisalat
appointed advisors at the turn of
the year with a view to divesting
their Nigerian towers

production, but we predict that economic expansion towers. Incumbent towercos IHS, Helios Towers
will subsequently slow as oil production stagnates Nigeria and SWAP already own and operate an
and lack of reforms hold up new investments estimated 4,400 Nigerian towers.

Nigerian towers for sale These prospective transactions take place against
a backdrop of a particularly challenging cell
(estimated counts)
site energy situation in Nigeria; 50% of Nigerias
towers are off-grid, with a further 40% on
4,000
unreliable grids. At the recent GSMA Green Power
for Mobile Working Group in Lagos attended by
4,000 Please feel free to contact the TowerXchange team
TowerXchange, it was reported that an average
For editorial & speaking enquiries regarding Africa or Asia:
of five hours of power was available per day at
5,000 Kieron Osmotherly
Nigerian cell sites, with only 60% of that usable CEO & Head of Africa
due to poor quality. Diesel theft remains a major E: kosmotherly@towerxchange.com
2,500
concern in Nigeria. M: +44 7771 148001
For editorial & speaking enquiries regarding LatAm or
1,300 Substantial BTS and amendment revenue Europe:
opportunities are also present in Nigeria; New Arianna Neri

Head of Americas
towers are being deployed at a rate of 4-5,000 per
E: aneri@towerxchange.com
9,000 700 year. The 2G & 3G Base stations (including rooftops M: +39 338 111 2103
and other PoPs) are growing at 7-8000 per year,
MTN For advertising opportunities & event participation:
about half with 2G equipment, half 3G, said Inder Annabelle mayhew
Airtel towers
Bajaj, CEO of Helios Towers Nigeria in a recent Chief Commercial Officer
Etisalat towers
interview with TowerXchange. Other positive E: amayhew@towerxchange.com
4,000 remaining operator captive towers, primarily
M: +44 7423 512588
factors for towercos and investors interested in
belonging to Glo
Nigerian towers include the absence of fixed line For media partnerships & to request additional subscriptions:
Existing independent towerco owned towers:
Harpreet Sohanpal
service, LTE moving from trial to launch, and the
IHS Head of Marketing
potential for mobile subscriber penetration and
HTN E: hsonanpal@towerxchange.com
mobile data usage growth. There is the potential to
SWAP For the designers of the TowerXchange Journal & brand:
achieve healthy tenancy ratios in Nigeria; according
Jon Whitty
The agreement was for an initial 15 years. For to HTNs Bajaj the pioneering towerco has 800 Senior Designer & Brand Development
its part, HTN signed a long-term tower lease greenfield sites on which we have tenancy ratios of E: jon@blacklightdesign.co.uk
agreement worth hundreds of millions of dollars 2.6, which is one of the highest tenancy ratios in the The TowerXchange Journal is published by Site Seven Media Ltd.
with Multilinks and claimed it was owed around global tower industry.
2014 Site Seven Media Ltd. All rights reserved. Neither the whole
US$252mn at the time former parent company nor any substantial part of this publication may be re-produced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without
Telkom South Africa was looking to divest its All of the Nigerian operators should be looking to the prior permission of Site Seven Media Ltd. Short extracts may
stake in 2011. Starcomms and Multilinks suffered put their towers on the market. Whoever sells their be quoted if TowerXchange is cited as the source. TowerXchange
is a trading name of Site Seven Media Ltd, registered in the UK.
subscription losses and have recently been acquired towers first gets the best valuation, asserted Fazal Company number 8293930.
by Capcom. Hussain, former CEO of SWAP

How Hotspot Network built
TowerXchange: Please introduce us to Hotspot
Network Limited.
a portfolio of 100 towers in Nigeria Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: Hotspot
Network Limited is an upcoming indigenous
From billboards and BTS programmes to full co-location services telecommunication infrastructure sharing service
provider. The company currently has a long tenure
Morenikeji Aniye is CEO of Hotspot Network build-to-suit agreement with two major telecoms
Limited, a middle market towerco with more operators to make infrastructure available to them
for the purpose of co-location. Hotspot is in the
than 100 towers in major Nigerian cities.
process of becoming a co-location service provider
Morenikeji, who owns 60% of Hotspot Network
to a third major operator.
limited, spent 16 years in various RF Planning and
Optimisation roles, including for MTN Nigeria,
The company built over 100 towers in the past eight
MTN International and Zain (now Airtel), before months and achieved a turnover of over US$2mn
becoming CEO of Verreaux Technologies Limited, within the same period.
a diversified towerco, hybrid energy equipment
and managed service provider which was the We have projected to acquire and build minimum
forerunner of Hotspot. of 250 sites in the next 12 months, growing our
portfolio to about 1,000 sites in the next five years.
Keywords: Whos Who, Towercos, O&M,
Construction, Lease Rates, Investment, New TowerXchange: How did Hotspot build up your
Market Entrant, Build-to-Suit, Billboards, Sale initial portfolio of 100 towers?
& Leaseback, Private Equity, Debt Finance,
Infrastructure Sharing, Africa, Nigeria, Benin, Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: We
Ghana, Cote dIvoire, Airtel, Etisalat, MTN, started by building a pool of billboards through
Hotspot Network agreements with multiple vendors, enabling us to
Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network
offer these billboards to RF planners on a five year
lease.
< The origins and growth of a middle market towerco in Nigeria We have since moved into towers and monopoles.
< A view of Nigerian towerco economics: lease term, lease rates and the cost of new sites We have constructed 100 towers in high traffic
< The impact of the potential sale of Airtel, MTN and Etisalats Nigerian towers areas, mainly in the big cities such as Abuja,
< How Hotspot Network is financed and their appetite for investment Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano. The towers were
constructed under build-to-suit agreements with

US$4,000pcm, inclusive of space and maintenance.
TowerXchange: Tell us about your interest in

moving beyond site acquisition into managed
services.
Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: In

addition to acquisition of co-location sites across
the country, we also want to start a full co-location
service, which will include site maintenance
and management, site integrated maintenance
services and participation in sale and leaseback
opportunities.
Once we move into maintenance, well outsource

so we wont have to add staff and will be able
to focus on tower acquisition and co-location
sales. We intend to offer site maintenance and
management on our own and third party sites.
Site 11
TowerXchange: Independent towercos already
Airtel and Etisalat, but Hotspot Network owns all TowerXchange: Tell us about the economics of own over 3,000 of Nigerias estimated 25,000
100 towers. running a towerco in Nigeria how does the towers. With Airtels Nigerian towers about to
capital cost of a new site typically break down, be sold, and MTN and Etisalats Nigerian towers
TowerXchange: What are the typical terms for and what is the going rate for a tenancy on a up for sale, what would be the impact on your
your leases? And do you offer the tower or the Nigerian tower? business of an estimated 18,000 additional
tower+power? towers transferring from Nigerian operators to
Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: The other independent towercos?
Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: For capital outlay for a new site varies according to the
now, Hotspot leases only co-location space on our cost of the underling land acquisition, different Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: Hotspot
towers under 15 year agreements, renewed every permits et cetera, but an illustrative example is Network lease rates are cheaper than our
5 years. included in figure 1. competitors and we have signed agreements with
our tenants and partners, so are well positioned to
The generator, antennas and ancillaries are all The going rate for a tenancy in a major deal with these challenges.
owned by the MNO tenant. metropolitan centre in Nigeria is around

Figure 1: Capital outlay for a new Hotspot Network tower in Nigeria By the end of 2014, over 80% of Nigerias towers
could be owned by independent tower companies,
which will limit mobile network operators appetite
Line item Cost in NGN USD equivalent*
to build their own towers, which should mean
Equipment more build-to-suit opportunities for companies like
Hotspot.
45m 3 legged lattice tower + related ancillaries 7,305,770 45,293
Shelter inc entry panel air conditioning, RMS sensor, electrical TowerXchange: How is Hotspot Network
4,092,108 25,369
reticulation and surge protection etc
financed?
RMS alarm 232,500 1,441
AVR / ISL (Indoor) 1,222,950 7,582 Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: We
Battery and rectifier 2,379,250 14,750 started with zero capital, but our vision has brought
Palisade fence 866,915 5,371 us to this scale. Hotspot now has a credit line with
RF materials 687,425 4,259 a local bank, but we need to raise money through
the capital markets to compete with IHS and Helios
2 x 15KVA generators inc ANF and alarm panels, 5,000L diesel
5,866,750 36,346 Towers Nigeria. We would also consider strategic
tank and Nepa box
Subtotal equipment 22,653,668 140,344 investment from an international company
interested in using Hotspot Network as a platform
Services
to enter the attractive Nigerian market. Ultimately,
Site preparation 523,435 3,243
were more interested in growing the business than
Shelter installation 218,937 1,356 in owning the business.
Tower works 3,008,550 18,638
Civil works 2,646,935 16,398 TowerXchange: What is your vision for the
AC power application 46,500 288 future of Hotspot Network?
Generator installation 26,892 167
Morenikeji Aniye, CEO, Hotspot Network: We would
RF services 232,500 1,441
like to expand Hotspot Network within Nigeria
Subtotal services 6,703,750 41,530
and into Ghana, Benin and Cote dIvoire for a more
Additional costs expansive West African footprint.
Warehousing and transportation 434,000 2,689
Security at site and set of locks 179,800 1,114 In order to get to that scale, we are currently
Site acquisition, permit and community issues 8,100,000 50,179 seeking to bring in private equity, debt or
international towercos investors; we cannot do
Total capital outlay 38,071,218 235,851
this alone, so were open to all positive business
*Exchange rate applied: US$1 = 161.3 NGN Source: Hotspot Network partnerships

Special Feature:
Towerco Perspectives: interviews

with the leaders of STP, edotco
and IGT
TowerXchange presents exclusive interviews with the business leaders of
three towercos that are redefining the Asian tower industry.
President Director Nobel Tanihaha introduces STP, Indonesias third

largest towerco with 3,500 towers. Tanihaha explains STPs acquisitions
to date, BTS opportunities, and diversification into fibre and microcells.
Axiata has taken a very progressive view of their tower assets, spinning
out and launching their own towerco earlier this year. edotco has
an initial footprint in Malaysia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and
Cambodia, but provides a platform for the acquisition of further assets
and for the consolidation of parallel capacity. edotco has a vision to be
more than just a tower operator - to learn more, TowerXchange spoke to
CEO James Maclaurin and CTO Sairam Prasad.
And dont miss TowerXchanges exclusive interview with John Stevens,

CEO of Irrawaddy Green Towers, contained within The Myanmar Tower
Dossier special feature.
In this special feature:

104 STP s view of the Indonesian tower industry
107 Launch of Axiatas towerco inaugurates a collaborative era of
Asian telecoms
109 How edotco is operationalising their vision to enable connectivity
119 How Irrawaddy Green Towers plans to rollout 1,500 towers for
Telenor Myanmar

STP President Nobel Tanihahas TowerXchange: Please introduce STP and the
role you play in the Indonesian tower industry.
view of the Indonesian tower industry Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, PT SOLUSI
TUNAS PRATAMA (STP): STP is one of four active
With no concrete plans for 4G LTE development, Indonesia still holds tower companies of scale in Indonesia and is
plenty of opportunities for tower companies currently number three in the market after
Protelindo and Tower Bersama. The fourth tower
The geographical composition of Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,508 company is Mitratel, which is a subsidiary of
islands, is a challenge per se for tower companies and their suppliers Telkom, a government owned entity.
looking at expanding their footprint nationwide. But to date, the
biggest obstacle to the development of the local tower industry has STP own and operate approximately 3,500
been the absence of 4G LTE auctions. While the number of mobile telecommunication sites. Our tower tenancy
operators has decreased from eleven to seven over the past few ratio to date is approximately 1.7, and has grown
years, tower companies are increasingly involved in BTS projects at a CAGR of over 45% since 2010. STP has been
with over 6,000 new towers being built every year. growing thanks to the acquisition of existing
portfolios from local operators such as Axis,
In this exclusive interview, Nobel Tanihaha, President of STP, Bakrie and Hutch Telecom. Moreover, we have
Indonesias third largest tower company, offers a personal view of acquired tower portfolios from a few small tower
the local industry, its challenges and potential for the future. Listed companies in the past years: Nurama Tower (176
on the Indonesian stock exchange in 2011, STP owns 3,500 cell sites, towers, 182 shelters and 100km of fibre), HCPT
a little over 500 of which are shelters and indoor DAS, as well as (200 towers) and ISP Group (493 towers and 287
Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, STP 2,073km of fibre network. shelters).
Keywords: STP, Tower Bersama, Protelindo, Mitratel, Indonesia, Interview, Towercos, Axis, Bakrie Telecom,
Since December 2012, STP has started building
Telkomsel, XL Axiata, Indosat, Hutch Telecom, ARPU, Tenancy Ratio, Market Overview, Acquisition, 4G, LTE, Build-
its own towers and, therefore, is now organically
to-Suit, Microcell, DAS, Fibre Optic, PT Platinum Teknologi
growing in addition to acquiring existing
portfolios.
< The Indonesian telecom tower industry: operator consolidation, towerco growth and greenfield STPs revenue and EBITDA are growing at a CAGR
projects of around 40%, and our EBITDA margins remain
< STPs growth strategy and tower tenancy ratio over 80%.
< Prospects for spectrum to be made available for LTE in 2015, and potential stimulus for the sale of towers
< What role are microcells and fibre optics playing in Indonesia? TowerXchange: Can you give us a snapshot on
the Indonesian telecom business?

Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, STP: First of
all, it is important to note that in Indonesia there
are restrictions in terms of tower investments
and companies need to be local in order to
operate. To date, foreign companies arent
allowed to enter the market.
Until a few years ago, Indonesia hosted

eleven mobile operators but thanks to some
consolidation and trading cessations, we now
have seven. I would say that there isnt room for
that many operators in the country and Id expect
the number to decrease to four or five in the
future.
To date, operators have

stopped building their own
towers and tower companies
have been involved in
greenfield projects with a fairly
constant deployment rate
of approximately 6,000 new
towers per year
The largest operators are Telkomsel, XL Axiata
and Indosat, followed by a number of smaller
companies such as Hutchinson and Axis.
ARPU in Indonesia has been declining
steadily and is now reaching bottom rock at
own towers and tower companies have been
involved in greenfield projects with a fairly
constant deployment rate of approximately 6,000
new towers per year.
approximately US$2.27. Operators are struggling TowerXchange: What is the status of 4G LTE
to increase ARPU worldwide and Indonesia is network rollout in Indonesia?
simply following the same global trend.
Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, STP: In
To date, operators have stopped building their Indonesia, the Ministry of Telecommunication

Indosat sold 2,500 of its telecom towers to Tower Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, STP: In light
Bersama for about US$519mn in 2012. of the growing pattern of smartphone penetration
in mature markets such as the United States and
Just like everywhere else, the need for funding to the subsequent need for microcells, we decided to
finance 4G LTE investments will push operators follow that market trend and anticipate it. Fibre
to sell towers but as of now, there isnt a lot of optics will boom once microcells are needed
We foresee microcells growing pressure on large operators to divest their assets. throughout the country.
steadily as part of our business
offering, especially with the TowerXchange: There have been rumours While we wait for a nationwide need, Jakarta is
future launch of 4G LTE. The
largest mobile operators in the
country will all request small cell
installations in large cities
regarding the possible sale of Mitratel, is that
likely to happen?
Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, STP: The

decision behind the sale of a government owned
already a good market and we decided to acquire
PT Platinum Teknologi after the company signed
a twenty-year contract with the local government
to install microcells throughout the city. PT
Platinum Teknologi filled a gap in the market as
company such as Mitratel can be extremely it offers a service no one else is able to provide in
difficult to be articulated in Indonesia as any sale Indonesia.
of the company needs to receive the approval of
the Parliament and other official bodies. We foresee microcells growing steadily as part of
and Information is still looking for a suitable our business offering, especially with the future
frequency band for 4G LTE and there arent any At one point, Mitratel was rumoured to be for launch of 4G LTE. The largest mobile operators in
auctions currently planned. sale but that has been denied as the government the country will all request small cell installations
didnt approve it. in large cities.
There are only two active TD-LTE licenses
issued by the government which covers Jakarta. TowerXchange: Is the cost of power passed TowerXchange: What percentage of your
Auctions arent likely to happen anytime soon in through to the tenants in your portfolio? business comes from Build-to-Suit projects?
light of the upcoming national elections. I believe
that once the elections are over, the government Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, STP: Yes, Nobel Tanihaha, President Director, STP: To
will start planning spectrum licenses and I operators that lease space on towers still pay date, all greenfield projects in Indonesia are
wouldnt be surprised if that happens in 2015. their own power. handled by tower companies and we have been
very active in building our own towers as well
That said, I think that once 4G LTE licenses are TowerXchange: STP has invested in fibre optic as developing BTS projects on behalf of mobile
awarded, operators that still own their towers infrastructure through the acquisition of PT operators.
will start divesting more assets in order to Platinum Teknologi tell us about the drivers
finance the network rollout. For example, PT behind the acquisition and the companys Id say that 80% of our current business is
business model generated by BTS projects

Launch of Axiatas towerco inaugurates The edotco vision
Speaking at the launch of edotco, Dato Sri
a collaborative era of Asian telecoms Jamaludin Ibrahim, President and CEO of Axiata
said edotco is an independent tower company
edotcos vision extends beyond towers to power, fibre and Wi-Fi that will manage passive infrastructure, share
physical sites and related civil infrastructure,
and perhaps in the future provide field services
support and maybe even active infrastructure.
Quite importantly, we will promote green energy
management. Axiatas President and CEO shared
his hope that edotco would become one of the top
five towercos in the world.
The inauguration of edotco represented the

culmination of a two year project from initial
conception to launch. edotco Group CEO James
Maclaurin steps up from the role of Group CFO at
parent company Axiata, a post he held for three
years, prior to which he had served as CFO at
Helios Towers Africa, Vodafone Central Europe
& Africa, and Celtel International. Judging from
YouTube videos from the launch, Maclaurin also
plays a decent jazz-saxophone! Maclaurin is joined
on the edotco management team by CFO Thivanka
Rangala, COO Nashad Emir, and CTO Sairam
Prasad.
The telecoms industry has to collaborate to find

ways of working together and reducing parallel
capacity; the number of sites on hills, said
Maclaurin. Ultimately this is about improving
Following its launch earlier in 2014, edotco has become the largest independent quality of service to the user. This is an important
towerco in Southeast Asia. Parent company Axiata becomes the first start for the Axiata Group and for the industry
to shift forward with a more collaborative
telecommunications company in Asia to set up its own independent towerco.
mindset, Maclaurin continued. Using edotcos

to reduce energy opex and the groups carbon
footprint.
We are as much a fibre business, especially in

the last mile, as a passive tower player moving
forward, suggested Maclaurin. Fiberisation
of sites is required we feel that in urban and
semi-urban locations well have to fiberise
within a certain period of time, especially with
LTE being rolled out in Malaysia. edotco also
hinted at an appetite to support partnerships in
Wi-Fi: it may make sense to take a collaborative
approach to the deployment of Wi-Fi. We believe
individual operators providing infill solutions
Wi-Fi hotspots is not necessarily working
commercially, concluded edotco CEO James
Maclaurin.
edotcos appetite for acquisitions?

TowerXchange and other commentators feel that
edotco will be used as an investment vehicle to
make new acquisitions. TMT Finance suggests
While the expectation is that all existing
subsidiaries will offload towers into edotco, the
decision will lie with each subsidiary, with the case
for offloading towers required to make economic
Some of the illustrious attendees of the edotco launch
sense, with Axiata putting forward the business
seed assets, 13,000 towers and 12,000km of fibre driving through our infrastructure by taking on case for each individual market. (Our) sources said
in Pakistan, we have aspirations to expand within more tenants, but also by looking for innovative this would be more difficult in markets such as
South and Southeast Asia. edotco has launched energy solutions. In some of our markets, over the India, where Axiata is a minority shareholder, for
in Bangladesh and Malaysia, with launches in next two to three years grid energy will become example.
Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan imminent. more expensive than renewable solutions, added
edotcos CEO. Serving Axiatas 220mn customers Certainly the formation of a Pan-Asian tower
Looking beyond the tower requires the equivalent of a 41MW power station company will galvanise the tower industry in the
Well grow both in terms of the volume that were the launch of edotco is seen as an opportunity region

How edotco is operationalising TowerXchange: Thanks for speaking to us
James. Whats the current progress of the
their vision to enable connectivity

launch of edotco?
James Maclaurin, CEO, edotco: Right now our

TowerXchanges exclusive interview with the CEO and CTO of the new Asian towerco
focus is on spinning out assets, operationalisation,
synergisation, and rationalisation.
edotco is a unique towerco with a vision
around enabling connectivity, that extends
Weve launched to our B2B customers, but the
beyond towers to energy management, fibre asset transfer process is still ongoing. Co-location
and In-Building Solutions (IBS). With the sales are under way in a few countries, and were
launch of edotco in Malaysia, Bangladesh, already driving volumes onto our infrastructure.
Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan to B2B
customers earlier this year, TowerXchange We are in the process of spinning out towers into
spoke exclusively to CEO James Maclaurin separate legal entities. Weve got individual co-
and CTO Sairam Prasad. location teams in place and synergy teams at the
centre of the business whose services are shared
by all the opcos.
Keywords: Whos Who, C-Level Perspective,
MNOs, Towercos, Energy, O&M, Transfer
The next step will be to engineer merger
Assets, Opex Reduction, Co-locations, Air
deals between tower portfolios in-country for
Conditioning, Renewables, DG Runtime,
those operators who show willing. We have
Procurement, NOC, IBS, Decommissioning,
a collaborative mindset and we are open for
Sale & Leaseback, Stakeholder Buy-In,
business!
Infrastructure Sharing, Asia, Malaysia,
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Pakistan,
edotco CEO James Maclaurin demonstrates his TowerXchange: Whats your view of the current
Bharti Infratel, Axiata, edotco
jazz-saxophone skills at the launch state of the independent tower industry in
Southeast and Southern Asia?
Read this article to learn: James Maclaurin, CEO, edotco: Our markets are
< Comparing the decommissioning of towers in Africa and Asia kicking off with the independent towerco initiative
< The criticality of securing management buy-in when spinning towers out of an operator a bit late and, as a result, a lot of networks are
< edotcos growth strategy quite mature with significant parallel capacity. For
< edotcos energy plan and procurement strategy example, Bangladesh is already 60% penetrated.
With around 25% of the population below the

poverty line, subscriber growth is already leveling In contrast, we have made progress with a
off but Bangladesh is nevertheless our highest Malaysian operator, for whom weve taken out
growth country, but starting to level off. 100 sites already. For us the name of the game is
building robust networks, maximising volumes
In Malaysia there are 14 state-backed towercos, and sweating the assets; putting as many tenants
and 20 small independent towercos. The lease as possible on the towers and driving as much
rate is reasonably healthy, and there has been no traffic as possible through the fibre delivering the name of the game is building
destructive price war, but it remains a crowded value by helping our clients get more bang for robust networks, maximising
market. their buck. volumes and sweating the
assets; putting as many tenants
In many countries in Asia, too often we see TowerXchange: I appreciate there is a long
as possible on the towers and
four towers within 75m of each other. One of
our objectives is to rationalise networks by
engineering deals to merge portfolios and take
out that parallel capacity. If we can sweat assets
more effectively, we can provide better yields for
tenants as opex is saved, through investment in
way still to go, but two years into Axiatas
project to spin out your own towerco, whats
the main lesson youve learned that might be
transferrable to other MNOs trying to pursue a
similar strategy?
through the fibre delivering
value by helping our clients get
more bang for their buck

driving as much traffic as possible
energy efficiency. Well also accelerate fiberisation James Maclaurin, CEO, edotco: The key is to
and the replacement of microwave links. Without ensure alignment with the vision amongst senior
exception all of our customers in Malaysia are management. As CFO of Axiata I sponsored the
requesting information on our roadmap to project to spin out the towers and fibre, and was
fiberisation of at least urban and in some case fortunate to receive unequivocal support from the view that in every market towers will eventually
semi-urban sites. CEOs of our local OpCo, the Group CEO and the be shared theres a fine line between guarding
Axiata Board. your network and getting to market first, and
TowerXchange: We havent seen much deriving a bit more value from the assets. As soon
decommissioning of towers as networks are I have previous experience where there wasnt as theres another player chasing co-locations, it
rationalised in Africa do you foresee the alignment among senior management, where diminishes the value of your own towers there
market taking a different shape in Asia? some retained the attitude that the network are a finite number of tenants you can go after. So
was proprietorial and a source of competitive it is all about timing.
James Maclaurin, CEO, edotco: Independent towers advantage. I feel that perspective is unjustified in
have been more additive in Africa. For example, I most markets. There are exceptions of course, like TowerXchange: What is the growth strategy for
recall from my time at Helios Towers Africa that Papua New Guinea where Digicel has 80% market edotco? Is there a phase of leveraging Axiata
their pioneering deal with Millicom included share or Kenya where Safaricom is similarly assets initially, or can edotco be used as an
a rationalisation provision to take out spare strong. However, when I was on the board of acquisition platform to acquire new assets and
capacity. Safaricom, Michael Joseph and I were of the same enter new geographical markets?

than originally anticipated. The important point In my opinion, it doesnt make sense for markets to

is that private equity funded towercos need exit have more than one or two towercos of scale its
provisions. edotco doesnt have exit provisions, a long term, stable cash flow business, regulated
were not of a mindset to exit; were not up for to an extent it doesnt lend itself to excessive
sale and never will be. Our Malaysian government competition.
linked investors have a supportive and long term
mindset. TowerXchange: Thanks for speaking to
TowerXchange Sairam. Please introduce
Sale and leasebacks can only be The Asian tower industry is an exciting space to yourself whats your background and what
completed with a considerable be in there are a lot of deals and potential deals brings you to edotco?
degree of latitude to enable in the pipeline. The only frustration is that it takes
a long time to close tower deals in Asia weve Sairam Prasad, CTO, edotco: Wireless
compromises to be found. already pushed the timeline out on a number of communications came to India in the mid 1990s.
These are often 15-year deals, deals. Fortunately I was one of the first few who joined
and there are a tight set of
economic variables and drivers
that enable deals to be done
There remains an educational curve to go through
with customers and would-be M&A and sales and
leaseback partners. Would-be partners progress
along that learning curve can often be defined by
the state of their balance sheets, and the extent
the bandwagon. I have seen wireless networks and
technology growing from plain voice services back
then to where they are today.
In this wonderful journey, I was fortunate to work

with some of the best telecom groups like TATA
to which they really buy-in to the infrastructure Bell Canada International, Birla Tata AT&T, Idea
sharing concept those that buy-in are keen to Cellular, Bharti and now Axiata.
monetise their assets before the value of their
towers drop. If one deal opportunity collapses I started my telecom career as Wireless Network
James Maclaurin, CEO, edotco: edotco is a regional and we buy somebody elses towers in the same Engineer and have extended my experience
player with an aspiration to build a globally country, the value of the original partys towers vertically and horizontally over the years by
significant towerco. In terms of tower count were drops. doing various roles involving managing complex
already quite far up the list we have 13,000 networks like planning, projects, operations, IT
already. You cant apply conventional M&A methodologies and supply chain.
to tower transactions. Sale and leasebacks can
We are committed to a long term investment only be completed with a considerable degree of My experiences in managing tower networks
lifecycle and mindset independent towercos are latitude to enable compromises to be found. These started in early 2008 when I joined WTTIL, now
private equity funded with five year exit timelines, are often 15-year deals, and there are a tight set of known as Viom Networks, as Head of Operations
although that timeline may be pushed out a bit in economic variables and drivers that enable deals and Chief Project Head. We started the journey
some cases because deals came to market slower to be done. with 5,000+ towers and grew big to launch two

nationwide GSM networks for Telenor and Tata Sairam Prasad, CTO, edotco: The Indian tower
DoCoMo. industry over years has learnt and kept on
fine tuning their business model. A few of the
From there I moved to Bharti Infratel as CTO and important achievements of the Indian towercos
Head of Operations. Bharti Infratel is a deeply include:
penetrated network that operates in some of the
toughest terrains in India. Hence this provided me 1. Operator collaboration to form joint venture
with an opportunity to break through some of the towercos
complex issues being faced like energy costs and 2. The evolution of energy cost models from power
network uptime. pass through
3. The removal of parallel capacity, shutting down
TowerXchange: What attracted you to join the low tenancy sites
edotco team? 4. Handling the regulatory norms around EMF
radiation, green energy, and Health & Safety
Sairam Prasad, CTO, edotco: After spending six
years in SLT roles with two big towercos, I came TowerXchange: Axiata provides the equivalent
across the news of Axiata forming an independent of a 41MW power station what solutions would
regional towerco. I liked the Group and the edotco you consider investing in in to improve the
vision. edotco has a different model, were not energy efficiency of cell sites?
just a towerco, and our mission is to become one
of the most admired Asian infrastructure service Sairam Prasad, CTO, edotco: Our various footprints
providers. Were not just spinning out, operating have different energy challenges. For example,
and managing assets, were also looking at in- some of our geographies have pure 2G networks
country consolidations and other initiatives. while others have matured to overlay 2G, 3G
Sairam Prasad, CTO, edotco
The edotco vision is enabling connectivity with and 4G networks as well. Similarly electricity
an environmental conscience. So I am here availability and quality in different markets also d) Using efficient cooling solutions
to operationalise those values, and to do my vary considerably. e) Adopting alternate and green energy solutions
bit of value add to our multinational footprint
aspirations. Hence we have an energy plan that is most As part of our vision, we have stated our ambitious
suitable and optimised to each footprint but goal to reduce our carbon footprint by up to
TowerXchange: What lessons can be learned primarily aimed at: 40% by 2018 using new and advanced energy
and transferred from the relatively mature technologies.
Indian tower industry to the emerging tower a) Reducing energy consumption per tenant
industry in Southeast Asia? b) Redicing diesel consumption per tenant TowerXchange: Whats your personal view
c) Improving energy efficiencies in power systems about the economics of alternate energy

in effect in a few markets, its already crossed over
or on the verge of cross over soon.
Once the above issues are overcome, all other

benefits like low carbon, low opex, reduced
maintenance and long term sustainability are
great to have.
TowerXchange: Finally, the CEOs of the leading

tower manufacturers, RMS and power solutions
read TowerXchange so on their behalf, Id like
to ask how does edotco buy equipment and
services?
Sairam Prasad, CTO, edotco: We have already sent

out several RFPs, received responses from vendors,
and have moved to the next level of evalutation.
We are also working on several long term projects.
Unlike a conventional towerco which provides just
tower space, edotco will be providing integrated
infrastructure services like tower space, O&M,
energy management, last mile fiber, IBS et cetera.
So there will be more RFPs to follow.
CEO James Maclaurin at the recent B2B launch of edotco

Our priorities today are to put in place various
sources like solar, fuels cells and wind power? customising products to suit telecom needs, a lack advanced systems like RTOC, an end to end IT
of scaled deployments et cetera system, optimised tower structures, and energy
Sairam Prasad, CTO, edotco: I have carried out efficient technologies and services. We like to
good number of studies around various alternate However over last six years, things have improved. benchmark our costs to the best of the industry
energy solutions over years starting way back in Cost of energy using conventional sources globally and leverage our scale so that we provide
2008. Back then we had two main challenges: has increased exponentially, while the cost of most cost optimised solutions to our customers
a) Making the business case work as the cost per producing using alternate energy is continuously
unit of production using these sources tends to be going down. Most of the vendors also have James Maclaurin, CEO of edotco, has kindly
higher than conventional sources customised products developed and tested for agreed to join the TowerXchange Inner Circle
b) Technology adoption related issues like telecom use. Examples of scaled deployments are Informal Advisory Board.

Special feature:
The Myanmar
tower dossier
Rated the most exciting tower market in the world by members
of the TowerXchange LinkedIn group, 10,000 shared towers
are being rolled out in Myanmar over the next two years, the
majority of which will be off-grid. You can understand why the
lobbies and coffee shops of Yangons top hotels are packed with
tower industry executives!
In this continuation of TowerXchanges coverage of the Myanmar

tower rollout, we speak to the CEOs of Telenors two towercos,
Irrawaddy Green Towers and Apollo Towers, and feature a
comprehensive overview of the legal and regulatory frameworks
within which the rollout will operate.
And checkout pages 91-99 of issue 7 of the TowerXchange Journal

for further Myanmar coverage.

115 TowerXchanges analysis of the structure of the Myanmar
tower industry
119 Our exclusive interview with John Stevens, CEO of
Irrawaddy Green Towers
124 Site acquisition challenges in Myanmar, by Polastri Wint
& Partners
129 Camusat secures contract to rollout 500 towers for Apollo
Towers
132 Flexenclosure secures their largest eSite order to date
from Apollo Towers
135 Announcing the TowerXchange Meetup Asia 2014!

The structure of the
Phase one of the rollout of towers in Myanmar,
which has already commenced and will
run through the end of 2014, will consist of
tower industry in Myanmar approximately 5,000 towers, concentrated

in and around Myanmars three main cities;
New license holders Ooredoo and Telenor partnering with four towercos to roll out Yangon, Mandalay and Naypyidaw. Phase two,
commencing in 2015, could consist of a further
10,000 shared towers in two years
5,000 towers and is likely to extend deeper into
rural Myanmar.
TowerXchange has consolidated dozens of sources to sketch
our initial impressions of the shape of the Myanmar tower
Four towercos are currently active in Myanmar,
rollout. With around 1,800 towers already standing, owned by
each of which has been issued temporary licenses
incumbent operators MPT and YPT, new international license
to enable them to acquire sites and commence
holders Telenor have engaged Apollo Towers and Irrawaddy
civil works, and each assigned initial tranches
Green Towers, while Ooredoo have engaged MTC (Digicel)
of 1,000-1,500 towers by the two newly licensed
and Pan Asia Towers (Protelindo) to rollout an initial 10,000
international operators, Telenor and Ooredoo.
independent towers over the next two years.
Reports from the front lines of site acquisition

Keywords: Towercos, Construction, Market Overview, Investment,
suggest it will be challenging to secure land
New License, Network Rollout, Tender, Pass-Through, Leasing
& Permitting, Regulation, Off-Grid, Greenfield, Infrastructure leases to get new sites installed, but plenty of
Sharing, Asia, Myanmar, Apollo Towers, Irrawaddy Green Towers, site hunters are scouring Myanmar for cell sites!
Pan Asia Towers, Myanmar Tower Company, Digicel, Protelindo, All land belongs the government in Myanmar;
Tillman Global Holdings, Alcazar Capital, VIOM QUIPPO, SREI citizens can only lease land. If foreign companies
Group, Tower Bersama, edotco, KDDI, Orange, True Corp, Deloitte, secure an investment permit they are allowed
Roland Berger, Telenor, Ooredoo, MPT, YPT to enter into long term leases of up to fifty years,
By Kieron Osmotherly, CEO, TowerXchange
with two ten year term extensions (for details
of the application of real estate, investment and
Read this article to learn: telecommunications law to the tower roll out,
< The timelines for the phased rollout of towers and the distribution of sites among Myanmars four read our interview with local law firm Polastri
towercos, including TowerXchanges forecast Myanmar tower count Wint & Partners).
< Which towercos offer tower+power, which have a power pass through
< The investment and tower strategies of MPT and YPT Introducing Myanmars towercos and their role in
< Early signs of the MCITs involvement in limiting parallel infrastructure selecting power equipment
< A summary of the challenges and opportunities for the Myanmar tower rollout
In phase one of the rollout, Ooredoo has assigned

1,250 towers each to MTC and Pan Asia Towers.
Telenor has assigned 1,001 towers to Apollo Challenges and opportunities for the Myanmar tower rollout
Towers and 1,500 to Irrawaddy Green Towers.
Challenges Opportunities / solutions
Ooredoo has pledged to spend $15 billion on
Under-developed transport infrastructure means Secure local partner and use limited weight equipment
its network infrastructure throughout its 15 challenging inland logistics loads including light weight towers
year license. Ooredoo partner MTC (Myanmar
Tower Company) was given a head-start by Lack of rural electrification Hybrid and renewable energy solutions with deep
cycle batteries
parent company Digicels work on staffing up
and building a radio network plan in support of Monsoon rains Robust fleet
their ultimately unsuccessful bid to acquire one
Immature local banking and insurance industry Foreign banks able to enter Myanmar after they join
of Myanmars two international MNO licenses. the ASEAN Economic Community single market in
The consortium behind MTC also includes Yoma 2016. Small, state-dominated Myanmar insurance
Strategic Holdings, one of Myanmars leading real market being liberalised
estate companies. There has been speculation that Limited telecoms construction experience of local Expat management trains local resources
Ooredoo is considering acquiring a 10% stake in contractors
MTC, although this has not yet been confirmed.
Unrest, particularly in Northern region Continuing efforts to maintain a ceasefire
Ooredoos other towerco partner is Pan Asia Difficulty co-ordinating rollout of shared Progressive MCIT strongly discourages tower builds at
Towers, part of the Protelindo stable, whose roots infrastructure across four MNOs and four towercos duplicate sites
trace back to Gearon Communications, so they Ownership of land prohibited Long term leases for foreign companies with an
have considerable experience and resources to investment permit
draw upon.
Unable to access religious and agricultural real estate Access to the significant amount of land owned by
government
Power costs are believed to be passed through to
the tenant by MTC and Pan Asia Towers. Ooredoo Site acquisition lease ownership often unclear, Local and expat site hunters working very hard to
lease holders reluctant to sign overcome the challenges
issued an RFI in March 2014 seeking to explore
opex sharing business models for cell site energy, Some sanctions remain in place, some individuals Check the ownership of local partners
but the complexity of establishing an ESCO in are on US and other black lists
Myanmar means a capex model remains an
Anticipated import complexities and taxes Vendors report that taxes are reasonable, with efficient
option for Ooredoo, who will likely make their handling and warehousing through the main port
own power system procurement decisions and
instruct their towerco partners what to roll out. Telecommunications Law, including definition of Government has issued temporary licenses
terms of Network Facilities Provider License, not yet
passed
Telenor has taken a slightly different approach,

Apollo Towers ownership structure and
Average precipitation in Myanmar (in) management team shares some personalities
with Africas Eaton Towers. Apollo Towers is a
subsidiary of Tillman Global Holdings LLC, a
25 Delaware LLC wholly owned by Sanjiv Ahuja.
Former CEO and COO of Orange, subsequently
Chairman and CEO of LightSquared, Ahuja is
20 one of the co-founders of Eaton Towers. Apollos
management team includes Lorelli, formerly
a consultant to Eaton, and Eaton alumni Philip
Cooper (CFO) and Brian Edwards (Operations
15
Director).
Last but not least, receiving 1,500 towers from

10 21.4 20.9
19.5 Telenor in phase 1B, are Irrawaddy Green Towers
a joint venture between Alcazar Capitals
13.8 Golden Towers, and Indias VIOM QUIPPO,
5 9.5 backed by SREI Group. Alcazar Capital had
7.1 explored several tower opportunities in Africa
1.4
0.2 0.2 0.4 0.4 and Southeast Asia, and owns a small portfolio of
2
0 towers in Vietnam. Irrawaddy reportly issued an
RFP for cell site energy solutions at good and bad
n
ar
pr
ec
ay
ug
ct
ov
Ju
Se
Fe
Ja
Ju
O
grid sites, based on a five year TCO, but like all
D
M
N
A
four towercos there is likely to be a threshold of

Source: Weatherbase
capex they can deploy initially.
assigning tower and power to their towerco power equipment, the shelters if any, the fences You can read more about Irrawaddy Green
partners, Apollo Tower Company and Irrawaddy and the land leases. We will be fully in charge Towers in our interview with CEO John Stevens.
Green Towers. of security, this means that we have the access
control for all our tenants. Telenor has chosen Incumbent operators and OEMs in Myanmar
Apollo Towers Vice Chairman and CEO Francois to pay the exact amount of power used, i.e. the
Lorelli told TowerXchange that they had been electricity and fuel costs will be passed through. Myamnars incumbent operators are intrinsically
assigned 1,001 towers by Telenor, to be delivered For other tenants well offer a flat power fee per aligned. YPT (Yatanarpon Teleport) is 51% owned
by end of September. Lorelli continued: We will site category as an option. by the other incumbent MPT (Myanmar Post and
own the site passive assets i.e. the towers, the Telecommunications). MPT and YPT own some

towers, have a limited BTS programme, and are
likely take co-locations on the new towers being Forecast Myanmar tower count by end 2014*
rolled out ahead of their funding being secured.
New prospective international towerco and telco

partners are jostling for position. Tower Bersama
MPT
and Axiatas edotco are both thought to be 1800
holding discussions over potential opportunities
Irrawaddy Green
in the towers space, while Japans KDDI and 1500
Towers
Orange are seeking to partner with and invest
in MPT. Axiata and Thailands True Corp are
Pan Asia Towers 1250
believed to be in discussions with YTP. YTP is
being advised by Deloitte and MPT is thought to MTC
be advised by Roland Berger. 1250
Apollo Towers
TowerXchange understands that until Autumn 1001
of 2013, MPT bought most of their equipment
through Huawei, but that MPT has subsequently
outsourced their network of an estimated 1,800 0 500 1000 1500 2000
towers to ten different Local Support Partners
(LSPs), with two LSPs each receiving 400-500
towers. *Removal of duplicate sites at the request of MCIT notwithstanding Source: TowerXchange research
In terms of the OEMs, Huawei dominated the It seems all the new towers in Myanmar will be incumbent local operators MPT and YPT, there
equipment and service market in Myanmar built, owned and operated by towercos. will be no shortage of credit-worthy tenants in
and continue to hold substantial market share, Myanmar.
however Ericsson recently opened an office in To date the Myanmar Ministry of
Myanmar and the Swedish OEM is becoming Communications and Technology (MCIT) has The partnership between the tower industry,
increasingly visible. refused to grant permits to build towers in a forward-thinking government, and tenants
conflicting locations, which could maximise on an aggressive rollout timetable could make
Myanmar: on the road to creating a global tower sharing and fuel healthy tenancy ratios. Myanmar a global benchmark for successful
benchmark for successful tower sharing tower sharing. TowerXchange will, of course,
When one considers the capital commitments keep you informed and connected to the key
Myanmar could be a unique proof of concept for made by Telenor and Ooredoo to secure licenses, stakeholders as the Myanmar tower rollout
the independent tower company business model. and the imminent capital injections into progresses!

How Irrawaddy Green
TowerXchange: Please introduce Irrawaddy
Green Towers.
Towers plans to rollout 1,500 John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers:
Irrawaddy Green Towers is one of four new tower
towers for Telenor Myanmar companies operating in Myanmar.
We started out as Golden Towers, a newly formed

The progressive attitude of government is facilitating the co-ordinated, towerco with a small portfolio in Vietnam, and
accelerated rollout of independently owned towers an interest in Myanmar. Golden Towers found
ourselves on a shortlist of two towercos, together
John Stevens is a tower industry veteran with over 25 years with VIOM QUIPPO, bidding for the award of a
experience, having served in senior management positions and contract for 1,500 towers for anchor tenant Telenor
rolled out thousands of towers with US Unwired, Tarpon Towers and Myanmar. Telenor liked our speciality in power,
Sprint PCS. However, John is probably best known as the former CTO and liked the proven track record of VIOM QUIPPO,
of SBA Communications, where his responsibilities included sales so we joined forces in a 50-50 partnership to create
and incubating SBA Power Services. John currently owns Infinigy a stronger combined towerco.
Engineering and his own towerco back in the US, but his passion
remains emerging market towers, which is what brings him to TowerXchange: What is your experience of
Myanmar attracting capital to finance emerging market
towercos, and how is Irrawaddy Green Towers
Keywords: Whos Who, Towercos, C-Level Perspective, Construction,
financed?
Investment, Tenancy Ratios, Network Rollout, Pass-Through, Off-Grid,
Unreliable Grid, Hybrid Power, Solar, Procurement, Skilled Workforces,
Infrastructure Sharing, Southeast Asia, Myanmar, Telenor, Ooredoo, YPT, MPT, John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers:
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy
Apollo Towers, Myanmar Tower Company (MTC), Pan Asia Towers, VIOM, Whereas four years ago I was exploring an
Green Towers QIPPO, Golden Towers, SREI Group, Alcazar Capital, Irrawaddy Green Towers opportunity to launch a towerco in Cambodia,
which ultimately didnt come to fruition largely
due to a lack of investor appetite, now it seems like
there is too much capital chasing too few emerging
< The origins of Irrawaddy Green Towers: a JV between Golden Towers and VIOM/QUIPPO
market tower deals.
< Leveraging Community Centres to provide ancillary services at remote cell sites
< The implications of under-developed transport infrastructure limiting the weight of physical loads
< Irrawaddys TCO focused procurement strategy looking for better than 20% IRR Golden Towers is backed by Alcazar Capital,
< Government support: temporary licenses for towercos, easing access to government land, and not a private equity firm out of Dubai, while our
permitting duplication of sites partners VIOM QUIPPOs financing comes from
their original investors, SREI Group. We were

oversubscribed in our first round of financing
of US$150mn, now fully raised, and our original
partners are funding us further to our total of
US$300mn.
Were also counting on a fair amount of vendor

financing, similar to everyone elses strategy.
TowerXchange: Please introduce us to your

leadership team and their respective roles.
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers:

TowerXchange has already spoken to Karim
Dakki, our CFO. Karim is a finance guy from
the Alcazar Capital team. My COO from the
United Kingdom, Simon Payne, brings with him
extensive deployment experience in towers,
power and fiberoptics. We found him lounging
in Liverpool after recent stints in Zimbabwe and
Burundi, having previously held a group level
implementation role at Celtel.
Further my Board Chairman, Arun Kapur has

very strong experience on the proven concept of
Community Centres, which theyve deployed at
thousands of sites in India. Community Centres
provide ancillary services at cell sites located in
small communities, many of which hitherto had
The construction team
little in the way of digital communications with the
outside world. The Community Centres typically community gets comfortable using basic services, TowerXchange: How would you describe the
consist of a small building with a computer and more services get layered on such as an ATM challenges and opportunities of rolling out
a dedicated Internet connection, enabling local or vaccine refrigerators. Weve received a lot of towers in Myanmar?
citizens to access banking, e-commerce, health support for such initiatives from the Myanmar
services et cetera. We setup these Community government and from Telenor, who share the same John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers:
Centres very simply initially then, as the philosophy of community development. Everything in Myanmar flows through Yangon.

Theres a decent port with warehousing capacity, There is little grid power beyond big cities, and
and roads from India, China and Thailand. with no near-term opportunity to extend the grid.
However beyond Yangon, theres not much We estimate two thirds of Myanmars cell sites
infrastructure. will be off-grid. Even in the big cities a significant
portion of sites need backup generators because
The single biggest challenge in Myanmar is the lack roads and bridges often cant grid power is not reliable enough. Sometimes its a
of transport infrastructure there are good roads timing issue even if grid power is available, how
handle heavy goods vehicles,
to Naypyidaw and Mandalay, but beyond that, the long will it take to connect?
so we have to limit the physical
roads and bridges often cant handle heavy goods
vehicles, so we have to limit the physical weight of
loads, and we expect to use oxen and mules to get
construction products to remote sites. In Northern
sites where we have site hunters out, it can take a
two to four day round trip to get information back
weight of loads, and we expect
to use oxen and mules to get
construction products to remote
sites
Irrawaddy Green Towers is taking a hybrid
approach. Were considering solar in areas where
the climate makes it a possibility Telenor has a
mandate to deploy green power where possible
but the engineering and economic circumstances
to Mandalay! at a lot of sites wont support renewables, so well
roll out a lot of DG+battery hybrids.
Another long-term challenge in Myanmar is the
under-developed banking and insurance business. TowerXchange: Can you give us an insight
For example, Telenor requires its partners to have and phase 1B, the former being concentrated on into Irrawaddy Green Towers procurement
robust insurance, and want that flowed down to the bigger cities where the operator is going to get strategy?
their subcontractors, but many of the contractors the best bang for their buck; Yangon, Mandalay,
in Myanmar dont have insurance because of the Naypyidaw, Taungoo, Bago and Tharrawaddy. John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers:
deficiencies of the local financial services industry. Irrawaddys towers are in phase 1B, some in Acquiring the steelwork is relatively easy, selecting
Yangon, but many in the next blush out. power solutions is more challenging. There are
TowerXchange: Can you give us a sense of the no shortage of renewable, DG and energy storage
geographical focus of those initial 1,500 sites for TowerXchange: Tell us about the power solution providers, but sometimes the technical
Telenor, the timelines and the progress of your situation in Myanmar. data in their marketing literature doesnt reflect
rollout to date? the results you get onsite.
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers: The
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers: Both structure of Telenors contracts with Irrawaddy Our procurement strategies are focused on Total
Telenor and Ooredoo have roughly 2,500 sites to Green Towers and with Apollo Towers includes Cost of Ownership (TCO), rather than focusing
rollout in phase one, the timetable for which is both the tower and the power. My understanding purely on initial capital outlay, which means
yesterday through the beginning of 2015. is that MTCs and Pan-Asias contract with Ooredoo we have some appetite for longer term payback
includes only the tower, with power being handled solutions. Telenor has exacting requirements, and
Actually, the rollout breaks down into phase 1A under separate vendor purchase contracts. punitive terms in case their towercos fall short of

climbing, were bringing in experienced expat
management to train local staff.
All the towercos are taking a similar approach to

training inexperienced local labour to take over
later on. In Irrawaddys case, around a third of
our staff now are expats, who will train locals,
exposing them to O&M experience ready to take
over. We expect our staff to include 80% Myanmar
citizens in two years.
TowerXchange: How supportive has the

Myanmar government been in terms
of licensing towercos whilst the new
Telecommunications Law is still in draft form?
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers:

The Myanmar Ministry of Communications and
Technology (MCIT) have been tremendously
supportive and have adopted a very progressive
strategy.
Whilst the new Telecommunications Law

progresses from draft form to take effect, the
The Irrawaddy Green Towers project office
MCIT has granted temporary licenses to all four
their SLAs in terms of uptime, so we place more TowerXchange: How has Irrawaddy Towers Myanmar towercos, and can award more if
emphasis on technical capabilities than financial addressed the challenge of finding skilled and necessary. Irrawaddy already had a license in
costs to ensure we install robust power solutions. experienced people to install and maintain cell place allowing for leasing land and building tower
sites in such a challenging context? infrastructure through one of our local equity
Ultimately, we look for better than 20% IRR, and partners.
from day one were probably slightly less than John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers: Our
that on power. Lets put it this way; Irrawaddy is strategy is unique in Myanmar in that Irrawaddy The Myanmar Government has been very helpful.
spending 60% more on energy solutions than VIOM has two local equity service partners that This rollout project is so large, with so many
did in India that certainly led to some healthy have construction expertise and some telecom moving parts, that the government has regularly
internal debate! experience. For tower construction and tower convened meetings between stakeholders and the

of working in the tower industry. reputations, as has happened in certain other
emerging tower markets where the hillsides are
Challenges remain as the ownership of agricultural crowded with towers. The Myanmar government
land is not clear, therefore agriculture land understands the risk of duplicate sites and will
is currently not available to us, but all parties proactively prevent this issue up front.
yesterday the MCIT released a
are currently trying to work that out with the
list of around 15% of sites that government. And the Myanmar government itself TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how you
were conflicting sites. The MCIT owns much of the land, and most of the ministers see the future for Irrawaddy Towers and for the
has asked the tower industry to are willing to work with us to support the rollout of Myanmar rollout.
get together to resolve this as telecommunications.
they wont allow duplication of
tower assets in the long term
the MCITs approach is going to be
great for the environment and for
tenancy ratios
TowerXchange: What has been your experience
of how the MCIT might encourage or ensure
infrastructure sharing, and enforce privity
around sites?
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers: The
operators and towercos leading the rollout in
Myanmar are all experienced and, together with
a very progressive approach from the MCIT, the
process is being managed smartly.
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers: The By the end of 2014, well have two international
tower companies and operators are summoned operators with roughly the same tower count, and
to Naypyidaw on a weekly basis to meet with the four towercos with similar sized portfolios. Well
appropriate ministers, and has proactively helped MCIT. have our successes and failures along the way of
to streamline and standardise processes. Rollout course, but this is only phase 1A and 1B. Theres a
timetables are aggressive, and there are strong We have all had to submit site list and locations to large phase 2 of the rollout which well start talking
deadlines with penalties on Telenor and Ooredoo the MCIT, they conducted an internal evaluation, about in the middle of this year, and commence in
if those deadlines are not met, and the government and yesterday the MCIT released a list of around 2015, which might include a further 2,500 towers
doesnt want be the cause of any hold ups. 15% of sites that were conflicting sites. The MCIT each for Telenor and Ooredoo.
has asked the tower industry to get together
TowerXchange: How have government policies to resolve this as they wont allow duplication MPT are YPT are not standing idly by, they are
taken effect on the front lines, for example, how of tower assets. There are some fascinating closing in on partnerships with foreign investors to
easy has it been to acquire sites (particularly to conversations over dinner needed to resolve bring in fresh equity and enable them to compete
handle leasing and permitting) in Myanmar? this, as ultimately the four towercos are all in with Telenor and Ooredoo. Doubtless MPT and YPT
competition, but in the long term the MCITs will have their own tower building programmes,
John Stevens, CEO, Irrawaddy Green Towers: We approach is going to be great for the environment but with the MCIT limiting duplicating sites
cannot own real estate in Myanmar, but we are and for tenancy ratios. Its in the tower industrys and the rollout already started, the two local
leasing land for 15-25 years, depending on location interest to resolve this; we dont want to do the incumbent operators will become tenants on many
and the individual deal this is an established way wrong thing, harm the landscape and harm our of the towers were building now

Site acquisition
TowerXchange: Please introduce Polastri Wint
& Partners with a particular emphasis on your
work in telecoms in Myanmar.
challenges in Myanmar Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint

& Partners: Polastri Wint & Partners is a leading
Polastri Wint & Partners experiences acquiring 1,500 sites for one law firm, based in Yangon, Myanmar comprising
of Myanmars towercos twenty lawyers and four partners. We represent
various players in the telecommunications sector
TowerXchange had a unique opportunity
including a tower company, telecommunications
to chat with one of the leading law firms in
equipment vendors, and telecommunications
Myanmar, Polastri Wint & Partners, who service providers. We also provide the full range
are currently acting for one of Myanmars of legal services across sectors including corporate,
towercos as they acquire sites for 1,500 tax, major infrastructure, energy and natural
towers across the country. For an insight resources.
into the realities of site acquisition in
Myanmar, TowerXchange spoke to Senior In respect of the on-going nationwide site
Partner Wint Thandar Oo and Partner acquisition exercise, we work with our affiliates
Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint & Partners Karina Peng. in various States and Regions of Myanmar to
undertake land due diligence on proposed sites,
both greenfield and rooftop. This is achieved
Keywords: Interview, Lawyers & Advisors, New License, Rental Rates, Market Entry, Network Rollout,
through investigation of title based on review
Regulation, Country Risk, Site Acquisition, Leasing & Permitting, Customs, Infrastructure Sharing, Southeast
of title documentation and checks conducted
Asia, Myanmar, Telenor, Ooredoo, MPT, YTP, Polastri Wint & Partners
physically at the Land Title Registry, followed by
on the ground investigations with among others,
the neighbourhood community. We have also
Read this article to learn: advised on the provisions of lease agreements
< With an investment permit granted under the Foreign Investment Law, towercos can lease land for up to be entered into between land holders and our
to an initial term of 50 years, which term may be extended for two consecutive terms of 10 years each towerco client from a Myanmar law compliance
< The challenges of the lack of registration of interests in land; and of restrictions on use of religious land perspective. Additionally, we also assist our client
for business purposes with lease execution formalities and registration of
< The status of Myanmars draft rules for the implementation of the legal framework under the new leases.
Telecommunications Law 2013; and the urgency of issuing relevant licenses
< What you need to know about importing telecommunications equipment into Myanmar TowerXchange: What process have the operators
used to engage towercos in Myanmar?

Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint
& Partners: From our experience, the operators
have used a very thorough and exacting process to
select towerco partners, over numerous (intense)
negotiation sessions, making sure risks are shared
or passed on as much as possible to towercos.
Not surprisingly, as the selection process went

by, it seemed that many interested towercos
walked away. Hence, the towerco field narrowed
considerably, so much so that the operators were
obliged to take a more reasonable approach in
contract negotiations.
Early this year, telecommunications licenses

were issued to Telenor and Ooredoo, the two
international operators (about a year after the
With the delay in the enactment

of rules implementing the
Telecommunications Law, and
also the lack of any concrete policy
applying to towercos - perhaps
the biggest risk for towercos is
Union Government called for expressions of
interest for the same), triggering their respective
telecommunications infrastructure rollout
Myanmar Yangon accredit Chantal de Bruijne / Shutterstock.com
Partners: The Telecommunications Law having

just come into force and effect on 8 October
2013, is subject to on-going interpretation and
obligations. The operators have chosen towerco refinement in respect of its practical effect. With
commencing site acquisition partners for the first tranches of sites. the delay in the enactment of rules implementing
activities prior to being granted the the Telecommunications Law, and also the lack of
relevant licenses TowerXchange: Please sum up the risks facing any concrete policy applying to towercos - perhaps
towercos and their suppliers in Myanmar. the biggest risk for towercos is commencing site
acquisition activities prior to being granted the
Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint & relevant licenses. Be that as it may, there is no

are required to be offered by towercos as part of
the entire site delivery package sites must be duly
installed with passive infrastructure and power
solutions, so that all that a carrier needs to do is to
mount their antennas.
TowerXchange: Are operators asking towercos

just to build the sites or do the towercos own the
structures and lease space to the operators?
Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint

& Partners: Towercos will build and own the
structures, with space on the structures to be leased
or licensed to operators.
TowerXchange: In your experience, does there

seem to be a commitment to sharing towers
Yangon Myanmar accredit Chantal de Bruijne / Shutterstock.com
among the operators?
choice but to commence work now if the aggressive in existing investments in the manufacturing
roll-out deadlines are to be met. sector. Consequently, towercos would be hard Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint
pressed to obtain locally sourced industrial output & Partners: From our experience, the operators
There is also a fair amount of political risk to such as building materials (including appropriate will look to share towers. As a matter of fact, the
stomach, with elections scheduled for 2015 and quality cement) and steel frames. Telecommunications Law specifically permits the
lack of closure of a nationwide peace treaty among sharing of network facilities between licensees.
various ethnic groups. Geographically, mountainous This all makes investment in tower infrastructure Logically, the towerco business model will not make
terrains particularly in Upper Myanmar coupled risky, but the potential rewards, considering sense with one tenant per tower, and operators
with lack of proper transport infrastructure, Myanmars market of 60 million people may mean will be forced to share because of high capital and
reduces access to these areas, increasing time and that pioneers are persevering! operating expenditure, particularly at the many
financial costs for delivery of sites. hard to access areas and off-grid sites.
TowerXchange: Do the towercos also take on
With little grid power available beyond the more responsibility for power in Myanmar, or is that TowerXchange: What are the most salient points
densely populated areas, alternative sources passed through to the operator tenants? of real estate law in Myanmar that affect the
of energy supply will have to be considered. telecom tower industry?
The low electrification rate also presents a Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint &
barrier to investments in and/or an increase Partners: From our experience, power solutions Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint &

Partners: Under the Myanmar Constitution, all lands most populous city! The towercos are lobbying to
belong to the Union Government; citizens can only make this point to the Government, and to push
lease land, with long term leases being renewed for amendments to this and other parts of the legal
without much ado. framework, not conducive to site acquisition.
For a foreign registered company or a company the processes involved in TowerXchange: What kind of a license will a
registered in Myanmar, whose shares are wholly conducting due diligence, to be towerco need in Myanmar?
or partially owned by non-Myanmar citizens or able to get through to final lease
foreign registered companies, the single most execution and registration is Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint &
restrictive provision can be found in the Transfer of
Immoveable Property Restriction Act 1987, which
prohibits their entry into leases of immoveable
property of more than a year. Notwithstanding,
foreign investors may apply for grant of an
investment permit under the Foreign Investment
needless to say, time-consuming.
Short-cuts are never recommended
when it comes to leasing
immoveable property in Myanmar
Partners: Foreign held towercos will require an
investment permit under the Foreign Investment
Law, and like every company in Myanmar they
will need a commercial registration under the
Myanmar Companies Act. As rolling out telecoms
infrastructure is very capital intensive, towercos will
Law 2012, under which regime, foreign investors also need an import permit to bring in equipment.
may be allowed to enter into long term leases
of up to fifty years, with two ten year term Under the Telecommunications Law, a towerco
extensions. With an investment permit, the foreign to say, time-consuming. Short-cuts are never would also be required to obtain a license to provide
investor would also be entitled to certain tax recommended when it comes to leasing immoveable Network Facilities Services, defined therein as
exemptions and reliefs. property in Myanmar, considering that locals still service of leasing any element or combination
have the practice of (purportedly) transferring of elements of physical infrastructure which is
There is no single piece of land legislation land over a handshake. Also, very often, transfers used for the provision of (telecommunications)
defining real estate law in Myanmar; with various of interests in land are not registered (when they network services. While Network Facilities Service
categories of land being subject to separate laws ought to be) for avoidance of stamp duty payment or license is defined in the new Telecommunications
and regulations. There is also a multitude of land otherwise. Law, detailed requirements and procedures for
title documentation for different categories of land, application and grant of such license (as provided in
not to mention different procedures and practices One particular provision that has raised a lot of the draft Rules for the Telecommunications Sector
applying to transfers of interests in land and concern of late among operators and towercos alike issued for public consultation in December 2013) are
registration of such transfers at various levels of is a provision in the Foreign Investment Law 2012 yet to be formalised.
administration. which states that religious lands cannot be leased
for operating any business. In a region such as Pressure is mounting on the Union Parliament to
Given the above, the processes involved in Mandalay, where there are many temples, strict pass the said rules quickly to enable operators to
conducting due diligence, to be able to get through adherence to this provision would have an adverse meet the roll-out timetable set out in the terms of
to final lease execution and registration is needless affect on network coverage in Myanmars second their respective licenses.

We think there is less risk of interference with lease Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint &
pricing, and greater risk of word spreading among Partners: The telecom sector is very dynamic in
private leaseholders, driving up rental rates. Myanmar things change day by day. Plans and
schedules are revised time and time again.
TowerXchange: What do companies need to
taking into account all the risks, know about importing telecoms equipment into With no single law or regulation covering and
and demand for tenancies not just Myanmar? connecting land use, build permits, registration of
from Telenor and Ooredoo but also telecommunications tower sites and the right to take
local operators Myanmar Posts
and Telecommunication (MPT) and
Yatanarpon Teleport (YTP), we feel
lease pricing will be determined by
the market
Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint &
Partners: Until recently, private telecommunications
operators and contractors were not permitted in
Myanmar. Only Government-owned enterprises had
the right to import telecommunications equipment
the market has only just liberalised.
security over tower assets or land lease rights (not
to mention the lack of implementing rules under
the Telecommunications Law), it is safe to say that
investors willing to invest in Myanmar should most
certainly be practical, patient and persistent. As
sites have been acquired and telecommunications
infrastructure have been successfully rolled out
With an investment permit issued by the even in war-torn areas of the African continent, we
Myanmar Investment Commission and an do not see any reason why it cannot be done here in
TowerXchange: Will Competition Law in import permit, issued by the Ministry of Myanmar.
Myanmar affect the conduct and lease pricing of Commerce, foreign towercos and their suppliers
towercos? can import telecommunications equipment, Towercos are now on the ground in Myanmar.
with the recommendation of the Ministry of Everyone is geared up, the site hunters are out, and
Wint Thandar Oo & Karina Peng, Polastri Wint & Communications and Information Technology, sites are being acquired. The legal processes we
Partners: There is no single Competition Law in and where relevant, with the issuance of a have set up are going smoothly; we will start with
Myanmar. Be that as it may, the Telecommunications telecommunications equipment license issued by due diligence on the ground soon, and expect the
Law 2013 contains provisions which prohibits anti- the Posts and Telecommunications Department first leases to be signed within the next one to two
competitive practices amongst telecommunications (which list of equipment will be formalised once months, targeting having all 1,500 leases completed
licensees; but their exact impact on lease pricing is the Telecommunications Rules have been enacted). over the next few months.
yet to be known. Importers will be required to provide detailed
information on the equipment proposed to be The Ministry of Communications and Information
However, taking into account all the risks, and imported including the volume and specifications Technology are happy to support the installation
demand for tenancies not just from Telenor and of such equipment, as part of the application for an of towers in Myanmar the Government would
Ooredoo but also local operators Myanmar Posts and investment permit. like a swift, seamless progression to extend
Telecommunication (MPT) and Yatanarpon Teleport telecommunications access across Myanmar, with
(YTP), we feel lease pricing will be determined by TowerXchange: How would you summarise your the help of local operators, the new international
the market. view of the telecom tower market in Myanmar. operators and their towerco partners

Camusat secures contract
TowerXchange: For TowerXchange readers
not already familiar with Camusat, please
introduce your company.
to rollout 500 towers in Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: Camusat is
Myanmar for Apollo Towers a global market leader in the implementation of

telecom infrastructure, with a deep expertise in
building telecom towers. We have a presence in
A perspective from the front lines of tower installation in Myanmar 32 countries worldwide, and earlier this month
announced partnership with Apollo Towers to
Camusat are old friends of TowerXchange their whatever build 500 towers for them, and for their anchor
it takes to get the job done culture has enabled this global tenant Telenor, in Myanmar.
managed service provider to prosper in frontier markets where
others would fear to tread! So it is no surprise to see Camusat TowerXchange: Whats your view of the
entering the challenging virgin market of Myanmar, where opportunity in Myanmar?
they already have 70 staff on the ground and are gearing up
to commence rollout in April of 500 towers for Apollo Towers. Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: Myanmar
TowerXchange caught up with Camusat Chairman Richard is a great country to work in the people are very
Thomas to find out more. disciplined and eager to help.
Keywords: Managed Services, O&M, Construction, Installation, This new project pushes both Camusat and
Health & Safety, Network Rollout, Leasing & Permitting, Apollo Towers to be pioneers in a country at an
Off-Grid, Hybrid Power, Solar, Wind, Greenfield, Logistics, inflexion point of rapid telecom market growth
Site Surveys, Skilled Workforces, Multi-Country Partner, from its current nascent stage in the process.
Infrastructure Sharing, Southeast Asia, Myanmar, Apollo Myanmar is a virgin market. The penetration
Towers, Telenor, Camusat of mobile services is very low; this is genuinely
Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat
one of the last countries in the world requiring
substantial telecoms infrastructure rollout. While
Read this article to learn: this push will create both new challenges and
< Leveraging Camusats logistics best practices to overcome transport and power infrastructure opportunities for Camusat and Apollo Towers,
challenges in Myanmar common commitment to the goal of delivering
< Site acquisition in Myanmar value to Apollos customers and to the people of
< Investing in local people and resources to deepen the talent pool in Myanmar Myanmar will enable the partnership to write one
< Rolling out 7-10,000 towers in Myanmar over the next five years of the first pages of the modern telecom history in
Myanmar and sustain the countrys growth.

TowerXchange: Camusat has a reputation
for tackling and overcoming logistical
challenges in some of the most challenging
telecoms markets worldwide how have your
experiences in Africa and the Caribbean
prepared you for the Myanmar rollout?
Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: Overcoming

logistical challenges is one of Camusats
specialties! We know this kind of country very
well.
The climate in Myanmar makes installation and

maintenance of towers complicated, particularly
during the rainy season in August and September
when there can be huge variations in rainfall
and water levels, so we need to be ready
and equipped. However, were used to these
challenges from our extensive experience in
countries like Madagascar and Haiti. Weve been
in Myanmar for over a year now, so weve studied
the environment and implications for logistics.
TowerXchange: What is Camusats role in the

rollout of towers in Myanmar and at what stage
are you in this process?
Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: We are at

the first stage of the rollout. Camusat is currently
leading site acquisition, much of which has been
completed. Weve brought in experienced site
hunters from abroad to work with and train local
teams, yielding some good results. Each team
is fully compliant with local regulations and
processes. Our e-Sight asset management and site

acquisition platform homemade is very helpful found some good local civil works partners
in finalising geotechnical studies, building permits in Myanmar. While our local partners often
and other documentation in an efficient and dont have much experience with telecoms
proactive way. construction, they have talented people and a
good culture, so we leverage Camusats know-
We will commence civil works in April for an how and experience to train local teams. Camusat
initial 500 sites for Apollo Towers. Well also be already has 70 people in Myanmar, but the while Myanmar may be
implementing energy supply solutions. After emphasis for many of our expats is to train local coming late to mobile
installation, we will offer full O&M services. people. telecommunications, the country
TowerXchange: Is the focus of this initial
rollout concentrated on Myanmars three
biggest cities, or is it reaching out into rural
areas? And what is the power situation in
Myanmar?
As part Camusats broader strategy to build strong
foundations in Myanmar, we are proud to confirm
our commitment to invest in local resources,
training the local personnel for improvement of
the required skills and knowledge transfer to local
and implement a modern rollout
plan using independent towercos
to save capex and opex

will rollout the latest technologies
talent pool, thus enriching the local communities

Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: These first in multiple ways.
stage sites are concentrated primarily in Yangon,
Mandalay, and Naypyidaw, so Camusat has built a One of our main areas of focus within the
local organisation in each city. Camusat Academy has been to train people to telecommunications, the country will rollout
respect health, safety and security considerations. the latest technologies and implement a modern
There is little grid power beyond Myanmars rollout plan using independent towercos to save
three big cities, so we are already implementing When it comes to raw materials, importing capex and opex.
some sites with unreliable or no grid connection. steelwork from China and India to Myanmar is
Solar hybrids can be used where consumption is easy enough, and much of the equipment and TowerXchange: Finally, how do you see the
low, but there are few locations with good wind. concrete can be sourced locally. future for Camusat in Myanmar?
Hybrid power will be widely implemented at cell
sites in Myanmar, and in many locations gensets TowerXchange: To what extent is Myanmar Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: As the
plus batteries will be the most efficient solution. using a coordinated rollout of shared towers rollout reaches full scale, we expect 7-10,000
between operators? towers to be installed in Myanmar within the
TowerXchange: What skills and resources have next five years, by which time Camusat expects to
you had to import, and what have you been Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: We dont have 300 staff in Myanmar. We are starting with
able to use locally? know the over-arching coordination strategies of construction services, but will eventually offer
the operators and towercos. However, I can say end to end passive infrastructure management
Richard Thomas, Chairman, Camusat: We have that while Myanmar may be coming late to mobile services

Flexenclosure secure
availability, but most of the future sites will be 100%
off grid.
$multi-million deal to rollout eSite TowerXchange: I understand energy logistics

are also a challenge given the under-developed
for Apollo Towers in Myanmar transport infrastructure in Myanmar - how

does that improve the business case for hybrid
solutions in terms of reduced truck rolls versus
By far our largest eSite order to date David King, CEO, Flexenclosure DG+battery hybrids, and how does Flexenclosure
intend to work around the installation logistics
customers requirements in Myanmar as it has been challenges?
developed to be used in rural areas with limited if
any access to power infrastructure. Mattias Karlsson, Vice President eSite,
We were also one of the first hybrid power Flexenclosure: Flexenclosures eSite is perfect for a
solutions vendors in country, demonstrating clear challenging deployment like this one in Myanmar.
commitment to Myanmar when many others still eSite is a single cabinet solution which minimises
considered it too much of risk and an unknown the need for extended on-site installation work, and
quantity. That early start gave us the opportunity a two man team can handle the entire installation
to fully understand the challenges that the in a single day.
towercos were facing and we established a strong
relationship with Apollo Towers, who had a very Fully integrated into eSite is eManager, an advanced
clear plan for their business which matched very tool for site power network optimisation. eManager
well with our product strengths. installation and future software updates can be
done entirely remotely, with no-one needed on
TowerXchange: Please tell us about the cell site. And on-going eSite management can also be
site energy context in Myanmar - I understand handled completely remotely, whether fine-tuning
grid power is very limited beyond the big three for improved performance or correcting an error or
Mattias Karlsson, VP eSite, Flexenclosure cities issue caused by an on-site event.
TowerXchange: Congratulations on winning
Mattias Karlsson, Vice President eSite, eSite can deliver up to 90% reduction in diesel fuel
Flexenclosures largest ever order for eSite from
Flexenclosure: Outside the three main cities grid consumption, CO2 emissions, and energy-related
Apollo Towers in Myanmar - please tell us how
coverage is more-or-less non-existent. This is not an opex, and the best sustained performance over time
you secured the order.
issue for eSite though as it is designed for plug-and- versus any competing hybrid power system. So
play upgrade for solar power. The initial roll out is the business case in terms of reduced truck rolls is
Mattias Karlsson, Vice President eSite,
anticipated to be mainly in locations with some grid clear.
Flexenclosure: eSite is a perfect fit for the

Coming soon...
Meetup Asia
Q4, 2014
An eSite from Botswana

TowerXchange's unique, round-table
In addition, we have been working very closely
with local partners who have helped us to driven, invitation only gathering for
understand and overcome specific infrastructure the top 200 decision makers in the
challenges, and we will continue to work together tower industry comes to Asia!
Myanmar is the largest remaining throughout the project to ensure the smoothest
green-field market for cellular possible rollout. < Opportunities in the Myanmar tower roll out
mobile networks and this is a great < Perspectives from the Indonesian market
opportunity to do the right thing by TowerXchange: With an estimated 7-10,000
leaders
designing a world class green network towers to be rolled out in Myanmar in the next
five years, do you have a sense of the proportion < Axiata's edotco launches in five countries
from day one. Flexenclosures eSite
of those towers that might be built on unreliable < Independent tower model comes to Vietnam
provides us with a flexible turnkey
or off-grid sites? What does the future hold for & Cambodia
solution backed up by a strong
Flexenclosure in this exciting country? < Indian tower market re-ignited
deployment and support team. The
use of renewable energy options and
benefit both our bottom line and

Myanmars environment - Francois
Lorelli, CEO, Apollo Towers

minimal use of diesel generators will
Mattias Karlsson, Vice President eSite,
Flexenclosure: Our sense is that close to 80% of
these sites would be off grid.
As for the future, we are wholly committed to

Which city should the event be held
in: Bali, Bangkok, KL or Singapore?
Send your suggestions to:

successfully delivering on this first project for
kosmotherly@towerxchange.com
Apollo Towers and to extending our footprint in the
country in follow-on deployments

eSite hybrid power for shared sites
Flexenclosures eSiteTM is a diesel-battery hybrid power system for
Industry leading OPEX reduction telecom sites that cuts diesel costs, CO2 emissions and energy
Optimised single cabinet solution related OPEX by up to 90%.
Full remote network management eSite delivers the best sustained performance over time versus any
competing hybrid power system.
eManager by Flexenclosure
Operation Site logistics Engineering
Property Data Event L vell

Level
Local server Dew Point 0.1 Normal Temperature 21.8 Info=Job execution started Information d Connect
Discover and Info
Local Server Humidity 22.8 Low Humidity 24.4 Info=Device is online Information rver (SNMP)
Local Server Notice
Local Server Pressure 991.8 Rather Low Computed value 0.6 Status=21, Comment=Online Status Changed rver (SNMP)
Local Server Notice
Local Server Humidity 23.1 Low Temperature Limit low -200.0 Info=Device is offline Information al Server (SNMP)
Local MP) Notice
Local Server Temperature 21.6 Rather low Temperature Limit High 300.0 Status=20, Comment=Offline Status Changed ocal Server (SNMP)
Local Notice
Local Server Temperature 22 Low Humidity Limit Low 5.0 Info=Disconnection detected Information Lo
Local Server (SNMP) Warning
Local Server CPU 1 Load 43 High Humidity Limit High 100.0
Local Server CPU 2 Load 40 Moderate Computed Value Limit Low -50.0
Local Server Physical Memory 31815 Computed Value Limit High 80.0
Temperature alarm delay 20
Humidity alarm delay 30
Computed value alarm delay 30
Temperature hysteresis 1.0
Humidity hysteresis 1.0
Computed value hysteresis 0.1
Temperature *10 218
Network Overview
Business Control
1.50
1.25
1.50 1.00
1.25 0.75
1.00 0.50
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20.00 00.00 04.00 08.00 12.00 16.00
0.25
20.00 00.00 04.00 08.00 12.00 16.00
Providing new power to the ICT industry
in www.flexenclosure.com/tower
Special feature:
Ground lease
aggregators
Ground round lease aggregators seek to acquire the land
under the highest value towers, in some cases creating
a new towerco, in other cases creating a portfolio of
assets which is often subsequently divested to existing
towercos.
Ground lease aggregation is a tough business often

involving going literally door to door with thousands of
private landlords to build an infrastructure portfolio one
asset at a time.
As US-based ground lease aggregators reach scale and

attract sophisticated capital investment, TowerXchange
speaks to two of the market leaders to learn more about
the business model and to ask whether the ground lease
aggregation model could transfer to emerging markets?
Dont miss:
136 What lies beneath TowerXchanges introduction
to ground lease aggregation
137 TriStars Matt Newton on Building a towerco from
the ground up
141 TowerPoint Capitals Jesse Wellner suggests
ground lease aggregators and towercos can be allies

What lies beneath US ground lease market overview
Ground lease aggregators disrupt the tower industry
< Data traffic growth: 50% CAGR to 2018
Ground lease aggregators exploit a gap in many Telecoms real estate is a highly fragmented < Average tenancy ratio: approaching 3.0
towercos business models few of the US market, with many landlords only owning < Estimated tower count: 135,000
towercos own more than a third of the land under the land under a single site. With the lease < Estimated count of rooftops and other PoPs:
their towers. aggregation model dependent on expiration of
100,000
the existing lease, aggregating the land under cell
< Towerco tower ownership: >75%
Often targeting the highest value sites, which towers is a long-term, labour-intensive process.
boast the most tenants, ground lease aggregators With exit strategies often consisting of selling < Towerco land and rooftop ownership: <25%
painstakingly canvass site owners with a substantial portfolios of sites to towercos, the Source: TriStar Investors
proposition to transfer or buyout expiring leases. challenge of reaching scale represents a barrier to
As such, lease aggregators are felt by some to do entry. potential of emerging market towers, particularly
be a threat to the towerco business model as they in Brazil, Mexico and South Africa. Ground lease
transfer margin from towercos to land owners Meanwhile, the Big Three US towercos, Crown aggregators are also attracted by many of the same
balance sheets. Castle, American Tower and SBA Communications, macro economic factors as towercos (multiple
are all investing to acquire more land under their credit-worthy operators, spectrum for LTE,
As lease aggregators start to attract big-ticket PE- towers, both through their own lease aggregation favourable legal and regulatory environment, low
investment, TowerXchange thought it was time initiatives, and through the acquisition of country risk), which suggests they may prioritise
we looked at the model and examined whether portfolios from lease aggregators for example many of the same countries as towercos.
this layer of the tower industry could take root in Unison sold 1,800 sites to American Tower in
emerging markets. September 2011 for US$500mn and Wireless However, the opacity of land ownership in many
Capital sold 2,300 towers to Crown Castle in emerging markets, combined with relatively
Ground lease aggregation is an increasingly January 2012, also for US$500mn. weak zoning laws that make it more possible
crowded market in the US, with upwards of to simply relocate towers, doesnt make the
a dozen active players, including TriStar and Transferability to emerging markets lease aggregation model readily transferrable
TowerPoint Capital, who are interviewed in the To date, ground lease aggregators have everywhere.
following pages, Unison, Landmark Dividend, concentrated on the North American tower
Wireless Capital Partners and AP Wireless. An market, but certain aggregators and advisors are Meanwhile, international towercos are
ecosystem of proven brokers and advisors has also believed to have an appetite for international increasingly inserting right of first refusal and/or
developed to support owners of real estate under markets. the right to buyout leases clauses into their ground
cell towers as they consider their options in terms leases to protect their portfolios against third
of buyouts and renewals. Ground lease aggregators are sensitive to the party ground lease aggregation

Building a towerco from
TowerXchange: Please introduce TriStar
Investors and the role you play in the telecom
tower industry.
the ground up Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors:

TriStar is a US-based tower operator. We are also
TriStar targets the real estate under the highest value third party towers the leading aggregator of land and property rights
beneath existing third-party towers throughout the
Matt Newton has been part of the telecom industry for 20 US. TriStar is a nine-year old enterprise that was
years, initially with Columbia Capital and more recently as founded by wireless industry pioneers and has
Vice Chairman of TriStar Investors. As a Partner with Columbia grown with the financial sponsorship of several
Capital, Matt focused on wireless infrastructure investments, leading private equity firms.
backing companies such as Extenet Systems as well as Jim
Eisensteins Optasite. In 2005, Matt led Columbia Capital to TriStars core strategy since our inception is to
provide startup capital to David Ivy, the former Vice Chairman assist landowners in sharing in the increased
of Crown Castle. David Ivy is the Founder and CEO of TriStar value of their property. We also deliver solutions
Investors, a new towerco with an innovative model that targets to our mobile operator customers that reduce their
the real estate under the highest value third-party towers. Three operating costs by providing them substantially
years ago, David asked Matt to take an operational role, and hes lower rents than other tower operators. Our focus
now a fulltime member of the TriStar team. is solely on the highest value cell tower properties:
those with the most tenants (typically three and
Keywords: How to Guide, Interview, Towercos, Ground Lease four tenant towers). This is where our strategy
Aggregators, C-Level Perspective, REIT, Acquisition, Investment,
has the greatest impact on landowner values as
Tenancy Ratios, Business Model, Exit Strategy, Bankability, Active
well as the highest cost saving potential for mobile
Infrasharing, Leasing & Permitting, Rooftops, Private Equity,
Americas (North), Americas (South), South Africa, USA, Europe,
operators.
Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors

KKR, Blackstone, Colombia Capital, TriStar Investors
When we launched in 2005, our business was a
niche opportunity. Today, the acquisition of cell
Read this article to learn: tower land and property rights represents one of
< How the ground lease aggregation business model works, and its transferability to emerging markets the most fundamental business strategies in the
< About the gap between towerco ownership of towers and ownership of the underlying land tower industry. Every major tower company in
< About the size and investment potential in the land lease aggregation segment the US is now using considerable financial and
< How TriStar identifies and secures the highest value sites human capital resources to address the opportunity
< How TriStar has achieved scale in this highly fragmented segment in cell site land acquisition. In hindsight, its
hard to believe that the majority of the US tower

industry sits on top of leased land with expiring or focus solely on the acquisition of real estate
ground leases. But that is why there is such a great beneath the towers?
opportunity for TriStar.
Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors:
More than 75% of the cell towers in the US have This is what makes TriStar unique. While other
been consolidated by the major tower operators lease aggregators focus solely on buying real estate
TriStars portfolio count is
over the past 15 years. But less than 25% of the and managing ground lease portfolios, TriStar
approaching 1,000 sites. Although
corresponding land has been consolidated. The next has extensive experience as a tower owner and
ten years could witness the consolidation of more operator. By operating towers after the expiration of
this represents a small percentage
than 100,000 land and rooftop sites. With a focus on the existing ground lease, TriStar creates substantial of the estimated 135,000 towers in
superior wireless infrastructure assets, TriStar will additional value. the US, our sites currently average
continue to be the industrys leader and its most four tenants per tower and are
innovative operator. While other lease aggregators buy real estate under generally highly strategic locations
towers, TriStar is looking to build a tower operating and carrier hub sites While other
TowerXchange: Whats your role in the business
Matt and can you give our readers a sense of the
scale of TriStar?
Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors:

Were a team of 40 employees, so we all help out in
business by starting with the land under the most
valuable existing towers where the tower operator
doesnt own the real estate and doesnt share much
of the value with landowners. In this model, were
able to deliver cost savings to carrier tenants and
incremental cash flows to landowners, while still
lease aggregators focus solely on
buying real estate and managing
ground lease portfolios, TriStar has
extensive experience as a tower
owner and operator
a number of areas. My primary responsibility is on leaving a healthy margin for ourselves as the long-
financing, M&A and overall corporate strategy. term tower operator.
TriStars portfolio count is approaching 1,000 TowerXchange: All sites are not created
sites. Although this represents a small percentage equal, so tell us about SmartSites, TriStars invaluable data and analytics in the form of a
of the estimated 135,000 towers in the US, our data warehouse of cell site and landowner scoring hierarchy for our site acquisition efforts.
sites currently average four tenants per tower information, and give us a few hints about your
and are generally highly strategic locations and proprietary scoring hierarchy. When we consider a site for acquisition, its not
carrier hub sites. TriStar only focuses on these just a question of how many tenants are on a
types of premium assets. Within the premium Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors: tower, but also who they are. Tenant quality is
infrastructure segment we are the clear market SmartSites is the most advanced technical critical. Equally important is that we have done our
leader and our scale is fairly significant. platform in our industry. We built it internally and own engineering assessments of the core transport
it delivers a variety of capabilities across all aspects networks, so we understand how the carriers have
TowerXchange: Does TriStar and the other lease of our organization. Everyone at TriStar uses it networked signalling and how this impacts the
aggregators actually operate tower networks, every day. In particular, SmartSites provides location-based nature of a tower asset. It also allows

us to assess the future potential for site leaseup as a land owner can be done in two months or less,
well as network consolidation. often it can take several years.
We also track the remaining duration of the TowerXchange: Do investors see ground lease
underlying lease, as sites where the lease has aggregators as an bankable proposition? And
the shortest remaining term have the greatest what is your strategy to provide investors with
interest to us. It takes time to wait for ground an exit to realise RoI?
leases to expire we have a long duration business The past two years has seen the
model! Finally, we pay strict attention to local arrival of very sophisticated Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors:
and regional zoning to understand the likely Absolutely. Investors are attracted to the wireless
private equity capital, including
permanence of a location. Its the location, not the industrys incredible growth story: mobile data
the Blackstone Group, KKR,
tower, that provides most of the value.
TriStar has conducted physical site surveys of

more than 50,000 towers, including the majority
of all multi-tenant towers in the US. All of this
information is stored in SmartSites. Access to this
and several other PE firms. The
investments they have made in
land aggregation validate the
asset class
traffic and the proliferation of mobile devices,
coupled with highly predictable cash flows and
a customer base of mostly investment-grade
counterparties. It is viewed as fundamentally a real
estate thesis with enhanced growth potential.
data and the analytics we derive from it creates Our industry segment was largely passed over
enormous operating leverage for TriStar. As the by major investors for some time. That is not
universe of target sites expands over the next few true anymore. The past two years has seen the
years, we feel we have all the tools necessary to arrival of very sophisticated private equity capital,
remain a leader in site acquisition and to do so in including the Blackstone Group, KKR, and several
the most cost-efficient manner in the industry. TowerXchange: Take us into your office and other PE firms. The investments they have made in
explain how TriStar engages with a new land land aggregation validate the asset class. A more
TowerXchange: It strikes me that the owners of owner. competitive field should also push valuations higher
ground leases under towers must be a highly and the capital injection is likely to accelerate
fragmented segment of the industry - how do you Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors: All consolidation and stimulate the towercos to move
go about achieving scale? our contacts are initiated in-house. No landowner faster.
dialogue is outsourced. We contact landowners by
Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors: It is letter and phone, but it usually culminates with As far as exit potential, in the US there is a
an incredibly fragmented industry segment most a face to face meeting over the kitchen table to very fluid secondary market for land portfolio
landowners own just a single site. This creates explain how TriStar differs from our competitors, sales. There has been more than US$2bn in
limitations in how quickly scale can be achieved. and to discuss the variety of different financial aggregate transaction value over the past two years.
However, it also provides sizable advantages for options available to the land owner. Again, its a There have also been over 300 tower industry
those that have already achieved scale, like TriStar. time consuming process while closing a deal with transactions in the US over the last decade, so

law are required for your business model to appetite for such emerging economies.
work?
TowerXchange: Whats your personal view of the
Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors: Yes. evolution of the independent towerco business in
In fact we are aware of several companies already emerging markets?
acquiring land assets in Central and South America,
South Africa, and several European countries. This Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors: I
we are aware of several is something TriStar is considering, although we havent looked at emerging market towers for a few
companies already acquiring havent yet found a market that presents as good an years. When I last looked, it struck me that at some
opportunity for ground lease acquisition as the US point thered be a bifurcation of quality versus
land assets in Central and South
America, South Africa and
several European countries.
This is something TriStar is also
considering
market.
The requirements as we assess international market

entry entail the following:
< A favorable legal system with regard to property

non-quality assets that youd see a lot of towers
in emerging markets providing minimal use. There
were many assets constructed without co-location
in mind. I also think network sharing could be
a real dynamic that operators seek to leverage in
certain markets. However, the mobile economies
rights in emerging markets are clearly growing at a rate
< Multiple wireless operators (preferably three or that is an order of magnitude higher than the US.
more) with adequate spectrum and For markets with robust economies and multiple
infrastructure resources wireless operators, the tower business looks like it
< Favorable regulatory frameworks did in the US many years ago.
its reasonable to expect the most likely exit for < The appropriate political, economic, and
our investors would be a strategic sale or equity currency environment TowerXchange: Finally, do you forsee
refinancing. An IPO is also something investors opportunities for the diversification of the land
may find attractive as the public markets have been TowerXchange: Please breakdown what lease aggregation business model?
successful avenues of value creation in our industry. favorable legal systems with regard to property
TriStar has examined the option to convert into a rights consists of. Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors:
REIT at some point in the future. If we were to have A number of the other land lease aggregators are
an IPO it is likely we would convert to a REIT prior Matt Newton, Vice Chairman, TriStar Investors: Our expanding their business into billboards, wind
to the financing. first question is can foreign companies own the farms and other passive infrastructure. They are
land under towers? We then look at the underlying primarily finance platforms that will acquire any
TowerXchange: Do you see an opportunity real estate law, and the mix of public versus private infrastructure with proven cash flows. TriStar is
for the ground lease aggregation model to land ownership. Where the underlying land not likely to pursue these opportunities. We will
be extended to emerging markets? What ownership is opaque, it doesnt provide a great continue our focus on acquiring land and operating
characteristics of land ownership and real estate framework for our business model, so we have less towers as ground leases expire

Ground lease aggregators
TowerXchange: What role does TowerPoint
Capital play in the tower industry?
and towercos can be allies Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing

Director, TowerPoint Capital: TowerPoint Capital
Views on the US domestic and international ground lease markets from is a portfolio company of Private Equity investor
TowerPoint Capital GTCR. We aggregate the ground leases under
communication towers and rooftop base stations,
exclusively in the US domestic market, but we are
Jesse Wellner has been part of the ground lease
always keeping current on new opportunities to
aggregation business for the past ten years,
find valuable assets for our portfolio inclusive of
starting out his career in the space at Unison international markets like Latin America, Europe
Site Management in early 2004. Subsequently, as and Asia. These opportunities are very exciting but
principal and founder of the Well Street Group, he also present unique challenges that our firm is yet
acted as lead adviser on the conveyance of more to fully grasp. Our current understanding of risks
than $50 million in US and international towers. in international markets places the prospects of any
Jesse joined the TowerPoint Capital team (then significant deployment of capital into the long-term
Communications Capital Group) in 2009 when category.
equity partner RBS Greenwich Capital recruited
him help oversee the originations platform. TowerXchange: Whats the scale of the
TowerPoint Capital business?
Keywords: Whos Who, Ground Lease Aggregators,

Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing Director,
Interview, First Mover Advantage, Exit Strategy,
TowerPoint Capital: The TowerPoint team includes
Rooftops, Masts & Towers, Americas (South),
fifty employees and independent contractors. Like
Americas (North), USA, Brazil, Mexico, GTCR,
most specialty finance businesses, were a blend of
TowerPoint Capital
Jesse M. Wellner, TowerPoint Capital front and back office functions, weighted towards
the front end which is tasked with consulting
and partnering with landlords on their cell site
Read this article to learn: locations.
< How the time it takes to build originations capacity represents a barrier to entry
< Why its a good time for landlords to sell The firm grows primarily through acquisition,
< How to be seen as a friendly aggregator by carriers and towercos deploying mid to high eight figures USD annually,
< Opportunities for lease aggregators secure first mover advantage in emerging markets and secondarily through future lease up activity at
our cell site locations nationwide.

TowerXchange: It strikes me that the front end, suspect this dynamic serves as a real impediment to
origination part of your business is critical in landlords motivation to transact.
dealing with a highly fragmented market.
Having said that there is no question that the near
Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing Director, term bubble around these assets has created a
TowerPoint Capital: Despite a substantial amount great opportunity for sellers to take advantage of
of consolidation over the past ten years, control of prices that are unlikely to go much higher its a Ground lease aggregation is
ground lease assets is indeed fragmented. The large
majority of assets are still held by non-institutional
stakeholders.
Ground lease aggregation is like building a meal out

of grains of rice, one lease, a single US$150k deal
good time to sell. With the specter of further WSP
consolidation, technological advancements resulting
in more network flexibility for WSPs and interest
rates moving higher theres not a lot of argument
for higher prices.
like building a meal out of
grains of rice, one lease, a
single US$150k deal at a time

at a time. The time and investment it takes to ramp TowerXchange: Do ground lease aggregators
up originations capacity represents a significant have to be adversaries of towercos?
barrier to entry. This business requires a staff of
knowledgeable originators consistently reaching Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing Director, the relationship. Our approach is not to bite the
out to land owners and making a credible case to TowerPoint Capital: While some ground lease few hands that feed us, and to maintain symbiotic
partner with us. aggregators have taken a more aggressive approach relationships with our customers.
in dealing with the industry captives (incumbent
TowerXchange: What is your view of the current towercos and WSPs), TowerPoint has pioneered a The strategy of purchasing ground leases with near
state of the ground lease aggregation business in strategy rooted in partnership. Our landlords, the expirations can be viewed as a nuisance business
the US? WSPs and the towercos are TowerPoints customers by the towercos. Towercos are quite sensitive to this
and all are key to creating long term value. We have strategy because amongst other things investors
Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing Director, strong contracts with WSPs and strong relationships track the average duration of their ground leases.
TowerPoint Capital: Weve seen significant with the big towercos who have viewed us as a Controlling the ground for a longer period mitigates
increases in efficiency driven by tower company friendly aggregator with whom they have been the risk of higher rental rates, which allows for
consolidation of Wireless Service Provider (WSP) more willing to trade with. more predictable economic forecasting. Towercos
owned assets and the entrance of more competition. have done a very good job over the last few years of
While the increased demand has led to better US towercos play an enormously important role defending ground leases under their captive tower
execution for landlords it may be coming at some in our industry and will continue to grow through sites.
cost to quality interactions with landlords. My acquisition. To the extent aggregators choose to
sense is that landlords are becoming increasingly exploit soft spots on tower company balance sheets, TowerXchange: What are ground lease
frustrated by a lack of professionalism and overly like near term expiration sites, they may achieve aggregators options for value creation and exit
aggressive canvassing by the lease aggregators. I short term gains but it could be at the expense of strategies?

Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing Director,
TowerPoint Capital: At TowerPoint Capital, were
sensitive to looking for value. Were disciplined
about what assets we acquire. We prefer assets with
significant upside, such as rooftops with potential
for extra assets, or towers on tight compounds
where we can benefit from additional tenants Historically ground lease
needing more ground space. As an infrastructure
investor, were structuring transactions for the next
50-100 years. As a result were less exposed to near
term events like interest rate volatility. This enables
us to take a more long term view of strategic sales
or other exit opportunities.
portfolios have been sold to
towercos, but that doesnt
preclude other possibilities

Historically ground lease portfolios have been
sold to towercos, but that doesnt preclude other
Visit the
possibilities. TowerXchange: You mentioned a personal
interest in Brazil and Mexico whats your TowerXchange.com website
TowerXchange: Is there an opportunity for view of opportunities there, given that the
ground lease aggregators outside of the US? independent tower industry is less mature in < Access to the Internet of People in emerging
those markets than in the US? market towers a trust web of over 5,500 decision
Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing Director, makers in passive infrastructure
TowerPoint Capital: I suspect there is growing Jesse M. Wellner, Principal and Managing Director, < Independent analysis and commentaries on the
interest in international markets on the part of US TowerPoint Capital: My sense is that some prospects for tower transactions in selected
countries
aggregators. international markets like Latin America bear
< The latest industry emerging market tower industry
comparison to the early days in the US 10-15 years
news BEFORE its published in the TowerXchange
The limiting factor for US aggregators will likely be ago when it was all about speed of deployment for
Journal, accessible 24/7 from desktop, tablet or
a lack of financial and operational capacity as well the WSPs and towercos. There might be a lot less
mobile
as limited expertise in international markets. Its competition for land, but significantly more risk in
< A comprehensive archive of TowerXchanges
difficult to know what challenges, legal, operational terms of knowing what the landscape will look like.
interviews and analyses, searchable by topic,
financial and otherwise an aggregator might face However, early participants like US towercos are
country, company or grouped by category (e.g.
in a new country particularly a developing one. likely to take the defensive lessons learned when
interviews or how to guides)
However, the companies who can manage these building out the US market. Theyll close loopholes
< The latest news and registration information about
risks effectively and execute internationally will more quickly and be better positioned to anticipate TowerXchanges Meetups.
likely be rewarded as first movers. more predatory aggregators

Special feature:
From RMS to ILM and Site

Management platforms, part seven
With the help of Telemisis, TowerXchange looks at best practices

in the selection and installation of RMS. We also take a first look at
the new automated server architecture based Towerhawk RMS
system from Caryon Development, while also revisiting old friends
at azeti and AIO Systems.
Over the eight editions of TowerXchange, weve profiled xx

different RMS, ILM, access control and Site Management System
solution providers. Heres an index for your reference:
Accruent in issue 7 Infozech in issue 7

Acsys in issue 4 InfraSTAT in issue 6
AIO in this issue Invendis in issue 4
AKCP in issue 6 NAAP in issue 7
Azeti in this issue Qowisio in issue 4
Broadnet in issue 3 Quintica in issue 4
Caryon in this issue Tarantula in issue 5
Galooli in issue 4 Telemisis in issue 3
HMS in issue 5 Westell in issue 7
Inala in issue 3
Download FREE back issues of the TowerXchange Journal

at www.towerxchange.com/publications

How to select and deploy
The specification must be driven by what
needs to be done instead of what can be done
an RMS to meet your needs There can be a law of diminishing returns as

the specs for RMS get more complicated and the
Why some RMS deployments fail, and how to overcome the challenges quotations more costly. Fuel tank and power
system monitoring is a no-brainer at off-grid and
unreliable grid cell sites, and often pays for itself
A wise man once said You cant always get within six months. Access control solutions pay
what you want, but if you try sometimes you a handsome dividend particularly if you have a
just might find you get what you need. That problem with pilferage from within the supply
chain. CCTV adds considerable cost and competes
wise man was Mick Jagger, but his point readily
for scarce bandwidth, so may be best deployed
applies to the selection and deployment of RMS
at sites where third party theft and vandalism
solutions for cell sites!
problems are particularly acute.
TowerXchange has seen many RFPs for RMS

RMS requires maintenance itself, such as dealing
come back to market 18-24 months after an initial
with power surges that get through surge
trial and rollout failed, so we thought wed look
protection, so the more RMS equipment you
at some of the most common reasons why RMS install, the more components can fail, and the
deployments fail, and how those challenges can be more ongoing maintenance opex you are going to
overcome. incur.
Too many RMS deployments fail because the to meet the demands of deployment at remote Buyers need to ask themselves what the focus
specification is driven by what can be done cell sites in emerging markets. of their deployment should be, where they
instead of what needs to be done. will find the best RoI, and whether they need
TowerXchange has collected numerous examples full functionality at every site, or whether a
Too many RMS deployments fail because of a lack of the substantial operational efficiency simplified specification could be implemented
of structure in the procurement process. improvements possible through RMS, but it with less cost, complexity and risk.
remains critical that RFPs and RFQs (Requests For
Too many RMS deployments fail because of a Proposal and Requests For Quotation) are aligned Weve seen some RFPs that call for highly
conflict of interests within the supply chain. with the MNO or towercos specific requirements, specified systems and, unsurprisingly, the quotes
that a structured process is followed during from robust, proven RMS vendors come in over
Too many RMS deployments fail because, lets be trials, and that the right partner is selected to budget. Some buyers try to monitor everything
honest, some lower cost solutions are not suitable implement the solution. on a triple digit budget per site, so they do it with

lower quality equipment that isnt robust enough
to work in the field. Too often we see those RFPs
Selecting and deploying an access control and CCTV solution to meet your needs
back again a couple of years later after a failed
2000L of diesel is a very liquid asset at remote cell sites,
implementation, said Chris Begent, Commercial
and represents a big temptation for thieves and, lets be
Director at Telemisis.
honest, for staff and contractors. If you have a problem
with pilferage, you need to select and invest in a solution
A structured procurement process
that addresses your specific problem.
Define the requirements of RMS from

Before investing in CCTV, decide what will you do if you see
different internal stakeholders: the O&M team,
someone breaking in. Can security reach the site in time
your refueling subcontractor and business to intervene? Would you want your security contractor
management. Whether managed in-house or to intervene with a thief who might be armed? What is
outsourced, all your stakeholders have got to your priority? Are you trying to prevent theft of fuel and
share their requirements and buy-in to the RMS equipment from sites, or is the priority simply to know that
deployment. Rank requirements with priorities fuel is missing so you can refuel before the battery bank
1-10 to help you ensure only functionality that is discharged and the site does down if so, a fuel sensor
will actually be of use makes it into the spec; gives you the fuel level, delivery confirmation, and theft
theres no place for nice to know data, its only alarms, all at fraction of cost of an access control system or
going to make the solution more costly and CCTV.
complex.
Using conventional padlocks on gates and shelters provides negligible security given the number of
cloned keys that will quickly enter circulation, particularly if you have to grant access to multiple
Shortlist RFP recipients. Give vendors an
subcontractors from multiple tenants. It can therefore be useful to use a centrally programmable key,
indication of budget if you can, as vendors will
which means you need an electric lock. Using an electric lock on gates often means the power cable
then be able to give you a better idea of what
may be exposed, so make sure you make the best choice to meet your needs: FailSecure systems lock if
functionality youll be able to achieve, and to the power is cut, FailSafe systems unlock if the power is cut. The correct type of lock needs to be fitted
what extent you may have to standardise your for the purpose as fitting a standard Mag Lock is insufficient for a gate as it is easily forced open with
approach versus customising for different sites. a kick but a purpose designed gate lock will hold but requires gates to be in good condition. Investing
in premium electric locks will achieve only so much if old, wobbly gates in perimeter fencing make it
You dont need to break-in an unproven RMS difficult to line up the bolts and lock.
provider. There are a handful of telco-grade
RMS vendors whose solutions have been proven You need to understand your problem. Is your gate lock for logging who enters the site, is it a deterrent
at thousands of cell sites in Africa, Asia and Latin for an opportunistic thief who has a means of cloning old fashioned keys, or are you trying to thwart
America read interviews with the key players a more determined thief who will simply ram, climb or cut through your perimeter fence if he can no
at www.towerxchange.com/category/whos-who/ longer use his key?
monitoring-management, contact each company

As if selecting and trialing an RMS solution
werent difficult enough, next comes the most
challenging step of all: implementation.
Conflicts of interests within the supply chain
One of the most common reasons that RMS

deployments fail is in cases where MNOs and
towercos subcontract the installation of sensors
to their O&M partners, often the same company
that manages fuel logistics. There is logic in that
these companies know the specific conditions and
requirements of individual sites. However, it may
not be in that contractors interests to optimally
Take a structured approach

to trialling RMS overa
period of at least two
months to sort out which
suppliers can meet your
that seem to be able to meet your needs, and
ask for references from their clients. If you ask
vendors to propose a solution, rather than ask for
a quote for a specific component, they may have
a period of at least two months to sort out which
suppliers can meet your requirements, and make
a commitment to weed-out suppliers that fall
short.
requirements, and make a
commitment to weed-out
suppliers that fall short

a variety of ways in which they can solve similar
problems at different price points. Narrow the field down to two or three vendors
that you know are going to work, then look at
Take a structured approach to trialing RMS over costs.

Telemisis experience of how RMS is bought and sold
Chris Begent, Commercial Director Telemisis: receiving RFPs with details of what information is
Im glad to read that TowerXchange are required, rather than orders for specific sensors,
advocating a structured, appropriate approach to enables us to create intelligent and efficient
buying RMS that focuses on ROI even if its not designs using proven sensors designed by us or
always in our interests for simpler spec systems sourced from trusted specialist manufacturers
to be ordered! I think its in everyones interests and combining data to create a cost efficient
that whoever wins an RMS tender comes out design to meet the clients needs.
other side with a system that meets the customers
requirements and is installed right first time. Too often we see RMS solutions come back up
for tender 12 to 18 months after an initial vendor
Done right, RMS saves a lot of money, done wrong selection, which must be incredibly frustrating
it costs more than its worth, continues Begent. and costly for buyers. We whole-heartedly
Im always happy to put prospective customers in support TowerXchanges assertion that a shift in
Chris Begent, Commercial Director, Telemisis
contact with any one of Telemisis existing clients. focus to a structured vendor selection process
install and maintain an RMS solution that will Telemisiss SitePro is a solid, reliable, quality would improve the situation. A structured RMS
contribute to the reduction of maintenance truck solution and it does what we say. Telemisis use our vendor selection, which includes a trial phase
rolls and diesel consumption. experience and technical knowledge to provide with clearly defined success and selection criteria,
cost effective solutions for all markets that must be met by the successful vendor, is
Therefore it is increasingly common for MNOs the most likely process to deliver a solution that
and towercos to ask the RMS manufacturer to As specialists in RMS with many years of fulfils the true needs of carriers and towercos,
install the solution in-country. However, this experience in designing systems we find that concludes Telemisis Begent
solution only works some of the time. There

are one or two RMS vendors that have their trusted installation companies with a local honest! Keeping your alternate supplier happy is
own substantial team of field engineers, or footprint, is certainly more economical than also handy when it comes to contract renewal!
who are affiliated with multi-country turnkey flying in a RMS engineers just for that job. But its
infrastructure subcontractors, but several of the a conflict of interests to ask the vendor of fuel to Finally, a note of caution for RMS entrepreneurs
most reputable RMS manufacturers are just that monitor itself. Most towercos and MNOs have two and investors seeking contracts with emerging
expert manufacturers they dont necessarily or three preferred vendors. They may allocate market MNOs and towercos. MNOs and towercos
have deployment resources or experience in refueling and O&M to Company A, Company B like to contain their risk by contracting as a local
every country. may have tendered and not got the contract so OpCo, with limited if any exposure to the Group
ask Company B to deploy the RMS they have a HQ entity. Its the oldest advice in the book, but
Towercos and MNOs original thinking, to use strong incentive to ensure Company A are kept contract with the parent company if you can

A data backbone to
TowerXchange: Please introduce our readers to
ConnectM - what role do you play in the telecoms
infrastructure ecosystem?
optimise tower management Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM Technology

Solutions: ConnectM is a six year old company
Gemalto partners with ConnectM to deliver intelligent tower management
focused on providing remote monitoring and
solutions to serve its global telecom customers management solutions for several verticals. Were
able to demonstrate significant value adds in the
The award-winning ConnectM platform has been management of telecom towers, but we also provide
chosen as the first RMS to integrate with Gemaltos services for ATM, industrial, building and energy
M2M horizontal data platform, enabling ConnectM management monitoring.
to connect with an even greater range of devices.
ConnectM has already contracted close to 9000 ConnectM is a proven solution managing 5,000
towers in India, 4,000 in Africa and we just won an
towers across India, Africa and South East Asia and
order in Southeast Asia, so we focus on many of the
enables intelligent tower management through
same geographies as TowerXchange in fact were
its software and analytics capabilities. To find out hoping to get into Latin America as well!
more about the partnership, TowerXchange spoke
Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM to CEO Sriram Chidambaram. TowerXchange: Weve spoken to some players in
the RMS category who are focused on hardware,
Keywords: Whos Who, Intelligent Towers, Monitoring & Management, Access Control, Opex Reduction, others more focused on backend data analysis
Fuel Security, Uptime, KPIs, Site Visits, Asset Register, Shelters, RMS, Site Management System, Asset whats ConnectMs focus?
Lifecycle Platform, Job Ticketing, Infrastructure Sharing, Africa, Southeast Asia, Southern Asia, India,
Myanmar, Gemalto, ConnectM Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM Technology
Solutions: Initially ConnectM focused on our
own hardware, but over the years weve become
Read this article to learn: hardware agnostic we can integrate with third
< The five KPIs to monitor and optimise cell site performance and efficiency party sensors in the field. Our core value-add lies in
< Examining data analytics to reveal trends and generate predictive maintenance alerts the backend analysis of data; in building software
< Installed software versus managed service applications and customising data analytics to
< Crossing boundaries to interface with different stakeholders in complex supply chains improve tower management.
< How ConnectM leverages their partnership with Gemalto to increases their reach into the
telecom market, and increase the variety of devices they can integrate with Today ConnectM has tie-ups with different
hardware manufacturers worldwide, and can

deliver comprehensive tower management
solutions with business analytics.
We are confident in the value and RoI we can

deliver with our total solution.
TowerXchange: The first question our readers

want to know is is it proven in the field who
is using this platform and where?
Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM

Technology Solutions: ConnectM is working with
three major towercos in India in some pretty
tough locations where there is rampant fuel
theft, and uptime issues because of energy supply
deficiencies. We also work with three tier one
operators across eight or nine countries in Africa.
We recently won a contract in Myanmar where

our local partner will manage the hardware
installation, and ConnectM will provide the
backend data analytics.
So ConnectM is a proven solution, not slideware! ConnectM Telecom Tower Remote Monitoring Solution Features
TowerXchange: What are the key performance 1. Energy monitoring; particularly to reduce 3. Security and access management; controlling
indicators used at the NOC to manage and diesel consumption at unreliable grid and off-grid who gets access, integrating feeds from third
optimise the performance of distributed cell sites, enabling our clients to reduce the working party security cameras, and determining who
sites? capital requirement for fuel was present in the event of lost or stolen assets
Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM 2. A real-time view of site alarms; minimising SLA 4. Maintenance opex reduction; ensuring
Technology Solutions: There are five different penalties whenever a tower is down, whether adequate information is available about the
vectors on which our clients use ConnectM to it be due to the temperature shooting up in the health, condition and function of towers, so
monitor and optimise cell site performance and shelter, DG malfunction, a battery bank failing, et clients dont have to send technicians for every
efficiency. cetera issue, making tower maintenance more efficient,

and ultimately optimising to the point of achieving efficient tower management. Our ticketing and
preventative maintenance workflow can provide the system of record or a
single version of the truth.
5. Asset tracking; with sites distributed over remote
geographies, tracking assets as they are added to We gather alerts from shelters and from equipment,
sites is a key parameter and we have built intelligence based on which
ConnectM can serve as an ERP we can determine which alarms can be delayed,
Our clients want to see data driven analytics to
examine the top performing districts or clusters, or
consider the top five reasons for downtime. We can
analyse trends to generate predictive alerts.
TowerXchange: We have interviewed several

or backbone for efficient tower
management. Our ticketing
and workflow can provide the
system of record or a single
version of the truth
and which to escalate, and who, how and when to
escalate them. One of our core values is the ability
to generate logical alarms.
We have learned how to cross boundaries to

interface with different stakeholders in the supply
Site Management and Infrastructure Lifecycle chain. For example, certain alarms are escalated
Management solution providers - whats your directly to equipment maintenance contractors, so
view on the best way to deliver your services? the job ticket may go to the DG service contractor,
As an installed license for clients, from the perhaps via our mobile or automatic voice calling
cloud, or as a managed service offering where intelligence driven efficiencies we can deliver as options. By using these simple mobile extensions,
your own analysts interpret the data and ensure we can learn from different clients we serve in the the technician can attend the problem, then update
integration between alarms and job ticketing? cloud. to close the ticket.
Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM Technology TowerXchange: How do you unify information TowerXchange: How has ConnectMs partnership
Solutions: We dont have strong preference for one flows, and therefore projects and workflows, with Gemalto benefitted your business?
use-case versus the others, and ConnectM has been across complex, outsourced and sub-contracted
implemented under all these scenarios. supply chains? Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM Technology
Solutions: Were very excited about this
We provide some clients with a complete managed Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM Technology partnership. ConnectM has a strong understanding
service, monitoring through the cloud. Other Solutions: Indian tower operators face many of the and experience of technologies for tower
customers buy our hardware and software and run same challenges as their counterparts in Africa. management we understand the processes and
it themselves, and weve delivered in-house analytic There are many different stakeholders, each with pain points of towercos, and we have a roadmap of
solutions too. different information needs the tenant, the what they can do using the data we collect.
towerco, O&M and refuelling subcontractors and
Personally, I believe the managed service delivered equipment providers. Gemalto is large company with considerable reach,
via the cloud yields the best economies of scope and many strategic relationships in the telecom
and scale, and theres an element of business ConnectM can serve as an ERP or backbone for space. The Gemalto platform enables ConnectM to

work with different hardware, to aggregate data,
refined by us to make intelligent decisions to control Gemalto leverages M2M capabilities to enable cell site management
equipment. platforms and services
Partnering with Gemalto increases ConnectMs Gemalto is renowned as the world leader in digital with site access records, ConnectM can detect outliers,
reach into the telecom market, and increases the security, and they are applying their expertise to the making it harder to hide fraud. This kind of analytic
variety of devices we can integrate with. evolution of cell tower monitoring, management and intelligence not only helps detect fraud, it also finds
maintenance. patterns to optimise power usage, and enables cell
TowerXchange: Finally, how would you site operators to be proactive in working with their
differentiate ConnectMs solution from Gemalto has created a horizontal platform to suppliers to optimise site efficiency and reduce energy
competitive RMS, Infrastructure Lifecycle collect data from M2M-enabled devices and make opex.
Management and Site Management Systems? that available upstream to analytical intelligence
platforms. The platform has been created through a Gemalto is currently working with ConnectM on
Sriram Chidambaram, CEO, ConnectM Technology combination of the data communication modules for a comprehensive trial at a single cell site, which
Solutions: We have four key differentiators. M2M of Cinterion, a company Gemalto acquired in will yield a full demonstration with ten months of
2010, together with another acquisition, SensorLogic, a comprehensive data.
software platform for M2M data.
1. Our end to end approach; we have invested a lot
Kenneth Lowe, Director of Business Development for
of time in making sure we recommend the right
Gemalto is now integrating cell tower monitoring SensorLogic M2M Platforms at Gemalto concludes:
partners and integrate the right hardware
and management applications into this horizontal Were excited to be working with ConnectM, but we
platform. One of the first site management system are also keen to partner with other participants in
2. Tower industry experience; we have developed
providers to port their software to Gemaltos data the TowerXchange community. While ConnectM is
logical rules specific to the tower industry, which
platform is ConnectM. the only platform we can talk about at the moment,
are the product of managing 9,000 towers in we have other service providers who are building
difficult geographies As youll see in the interview with ConnectMs CEO on our platform already. Our objective is to build an
Sriram Chidambaram, ConnectM has a six-year track ecosystem of solutions around our horizontal data
3. Customisation; our solution is architected at the record of success, and is currently used to monitor and platform, which has open APIs suitable for integration
application level to enable us to quickly customise, manage 9,000 towers in India and Africa. ConnectM with virtually any device at a cell site. Its easy to
preparing new reports and new dashboards we collects data from sensors at distributed cell sites, setup, and our open APIs enable users to stand up
recognise that customer needs change, and that conducts analyses and integrates with job ticketing, independent monitoring dashboards for specific
management need different analyses and reports as enabling predictive analysis and maintenance. devices you dont need to build a vertical app for
their networks evolve every KPI. Using our platform, you can simply pass
The system has been particularly successful at helping data into your existing NOC systems, and have the
4. Data analytics; weve built modules to predict to reduce fuel theft within the supply chain. By flexibility to expand and customize outside of any
downtime, helping customers with optimise fuel monitoring and managing power use, and comparing standalone app.
loads and deploy replacement capex efficiently

All towers are not
TowerXchange: Please introduce our readers
to Caryon Development what role do you
play in the tower industry?
created equal Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon

Development: Caryon is the provider of state
Caryon Development advocate the creation of Smart Towers at critical hub sites
of the art Towerhawk cell tower and DAS
monitoring systems.
Caryon Development has created a state of the art, remote
monitoring solution based on an automated server With the rapid global expansion of high value/
architecture. This unique architecture enables the user to not high cost cellular equipment on towers and
only monitor the critical systems of a cell site in real-time but incorporated in DAS systems, more sophisticated
to also have full control of that site. Caryons Towerhawk tower infrastructure monitoring capabilities are
systems monitor generators, fuel tanks, batteries status, necessary to keep pace. Caryon Towerhawk
grounding, fiber and other equipment on the tower as well Systems monitor all tower functions in real
as remote monitoring of the twist and sway of towers time, improving operating efficiency and tower
particularly important to ensure H&S at older towers and functionality while providing valuable analytics
for critical microwave alignment. Caryon recognizes the to reduce costs for tower operators and carriers
importance of prioritising critical hub sites, and investing by enabling more efficient truck rolls and related
in robust and comprehensive monitoring systems to create cost reductions.
Smart Towers.
TowerXchange: Please tell us what you can
Keywords: Whos Who, Monitoring & Management, Market measure at a cell site.
Overview, Fuel Security, Loading, Health & Safety, Site
Visits, NOC, DAS, RMS, Job Ticketing, Spare Parts, Americas Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon
(North), Caryon Development Development: The Towerhawk systems
Lee Cantley, Caryon Development
capabilities list is extensive (all patents pending)
and added functions can be made at the request
Read this article to learn: of the towerco, backhaul provider or carrier:
< The importance of twist and sway monitoring from a structural safety point of view < Watchdog circuit: is a secondary means of
< How to upgrade to Smart Towers with intelligence onsite access to the site if there is a system malfunction
< How upgrading to Smart Towers at hub sites can enable tower operators to access government in the main fiber connection.
investment in Public Safety Networks < Grounding: special patent pending circuits
< The evolution of DAS monitoring monitor the ground of the tower, lights, on
site structures, radios and main site grounding

loop. When any registered ground is loose or TowerXchange: Does Caryon Development

removed, and/or the main site grounding loop focus on a particular category of sites with
is damaged, an alarm is generated for that common characteristics?
specific grounded element. This is critical for
lightning suppression, theft of grounding bars Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon
or bad grounding connections potentially saving Development: Our focus to date has been on two
millions every year in damaged or stolen items. categories; Hardened Sites and Remote Sites.
< Structural safety and stability (twist and sway): Comprehensive
Our sensors monitor and record tower movement Hardened Sites: Comprehensive Towerhawk
and excessive sway or dangerous tower
Towerhawk systems are systems are being deployed on towers and sites
situations. With aging towers, changes in wind being deployed on towers that are especially critical and/or vulnerable (e.g.
loading, high wind and corrosion as well as tower and sites that are especially Hub Sites) to insure seamless monitoring and
overloading with heavier carrier equipment, the communication at all times.
risks of catastrophic tower failure are of concern. critical and/or vulnerable
(e.g. Hub Sites) to insure
< Microwave misalignment: can be readily
identified and whether the failure is temporary
due to a storm or a situation needing attention as
with tower overloading.
< Tower loading and structural analysis:
Currently, engineering consultants estimate
seamless monitoring and
communication at all times
Remote Sites: As one example, Caryon has been
developing a plug and play hardened generator
and security system for remote locations where
site visits are difficult but information on backup
power, fuel levels and security are critical.
tower loading capacity. Repairs and TowerXchange: Our readers always want
reinforcement are undertaken based on a visual to know how proven is the solution in the
inspection of the tower. Towerhawk systems field, so can you tell us a bit about where
provide concise data, not estimates. Alarm points Towerhawk is in use in the US today?
are programmed into the system so that any at generators regardless of age and make.
risk tower is immediately identified. < Surveillance: Programmable camera systems Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon
< Lighting and generators: Tower lighting including pan, tilt and zoom functionality enable Development: Our systems have been running
functionality is continuously monitored to reduce on-site surveillance regardless of how remote on US cell sites since August 2013. We have
outages. Generator functions are also monitored a site may be. Camera arrays and enhanced placed equipment in challenging environments
for starting capability, battery health and resolution provide resolution in complete to evaluate performance over our recent harsh
accurate fuel levels. Generators can also be tested darkness giving the ability to view and record winter, and they have stood up well to changing
remotely and the status reported. All monitoring even when the cell site may not have any outdoor temperatures, precipitation, and wind velocity.
functions and status are visible on a customer lighting. Area alarm masking is also utilised
dashboard of all sites monitored. Caryon provides to report any on tower activity, non-authorised Our testing and engineering site performed
an instrument package enabling monitoring of all visitor or perimeter issues. flawlessly during this past winter and we

continue to make significant inroads into the DAS event, they wont buy a ticket! And they can We anticipate launching our DAS monitoring
monitoring, fiber and backhaul arenas with our be incredibly hungry data users, with several solutions in Q2 2014.
patented technologies. Caryon has several NDAs tethered devices. This is one of the elements
in place with various entities and is developing driving demand for DAS to boost capacity in TowerXchange: What is the capital outlay on a
customised monitoring solutions and roll out venues and stadiums. per site basis?
programs for those companies.
DAS as a means of filling in coverage gaps and Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon
We are also looking at several opportunities communication between towers in areas with a Development: We provide extremely cost
globally from towercos seeking help to resolve challenging topography, such as in tunnels and effective systems for DAS installations, hub
fuel theft problems at their sites. Caryon is under passes is growing exponentially. site monitoring and every type of cellular
also in discussion with several equipment communication site in between. The capital

manufacturers interested in integrating our outlay depends on what kind of site were
technology into generators and other cell site working with and the specific monitoring
equipment, and with backhaul service providers involved. Typical tower installations range from
interested in adding monitoring to their US$5,000 to US$15,000.
bandwidth services.
TowerXchange: Talk to us about the economics
We expect our solutions to be deployed at over of remote monitoring versus truck rolls.
1,000 tower and DAS locations by the end of 2014.
Remote monitoring of DAS Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon
TowerXchange: Tell us about the opportunities represents a significant Development: Towerhawk systems pay for
in DAS. themselves with just a few accurately informed
opportunity, and Caryons truck rolls and/or monitoring fees to carriers.
Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon involvement in DAS may
Development: Remote monitoring of DAS Rolling trucks to repair tower problems is a
equal or even exceed our
represents a significant opportunity, and
Caryons involvement in DAS may equal or even
exceed our involvement in towers.
There is an emerging market for mobile

users and businesses that demand immediate
involvement in towers hit and miss proposition at best. On many
occasions either the wrong vendor has responded
to the service call or many have responded
and are not needed. Being able to identify
the problem before hand insures the right
service tech is dispatched and carrying the
interactivity while working, shopping, traveling right equipment and repair parts. This saves
or attending live sports and entertainment both time and money. Towerhawk monitoring
events. At sporting events for example, if users systems identify a problem accurately and
cant IM and watch on-demand coverage at the immediately.

Towercos can then send well informed and Once engineering personnel understand and buy

outfitted crews or notify a carrier crew of in, we then have a foundation for discussions
problems with precision, saving time and money. with business development and corporate
planners. The recognition that Smart Towers
The Towerhawk Watchdog Circuit and back are a valuable asset to a company allows
up connection at each Caryon deployed site planners to add intelligent monitoring to their
enables back door diagnosis, accessibility and systems as they propose new towers or negotiate
repair even in the event of loss of other tower with carriers for tower installations or additional towers are really a
connectivity. tower equipment installations and fees. commodity and a
TowerXchange: How do towercos buy remote TowerXchange: Please define what you mean frame on which to hang
monitoring systems (RMS)? What has been by a Smart Tower. antennas. However
your experience of engaging with engineering in todays business
and with business departments? Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon
Development: Just as there was a transition
environment it is an
Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon from basic phones to smart phones, there is advantage when a particular
Development: Engineering staffs are the first
audience at towercos. They understanding
that we are not marketing a traditional and
limited function monitoring package where the
primary intelligence is back at the NOC and the
site systems are essentially passive connections
a need for a transition from basic towers to
smart towers. Currently tenants have a variety
of location choices and there is often little to
distinguish one tower location from another.
In other words other than location the towers
are really a commodity and a frame on which
tower or group of towers
has intelligent monitoring
of the site built in and
available

that only transmit when a problem accrues, to hang antennas. However in todays business
this is essential to our message. Caryon systems environment it is an advantage when a particular
provide data analysis and reporting functions tower or group of towers has intelligent
from intelligent data gathering systems located monitoring of the site built in and available.
at each site with back-up systems in the event of These functions add to tower reliability and were 900 cell sites in the US. Today there are
power outages or communication interruption. make them more attractive to carrier tenants. about 190,000. Each cell tower represents a
These are Smart Tower standalone systems We believe the benefits to the tower companies substantial infrastructure installation in its own
that do not require a NOC to enable system in improved performance and reduced right, with potentially millions of dollars worth
operation. Engineers understand the need for maintenance costs coupled with carriers knowing of active equipment, backup power solutions
backup systems, tower stability, safety issues that the site meets their long term needs is a real and fiber backhaul connections. Many of these
and key function access at all sites. In addition, advantage. cell sites are unmanned and in remote locations
Caryon also offers specialised NOC and reporting requiring sites be secure and operating within
capability for our entire suite of systems. Weve seen statistics stating that In 1985 there certain parameters. Site security is moving in

disaster, the status of all towers and functions are
accessible. Re-routing and emergency systems
can be effectively deployed and a real time
communications assessment is in place.
We feel public safety network initiatives

We feel public safety network initiatives on a global basis
will create participation opportunities for the owners of
critical hub sites in all markets including emerging markets
on a global basis will create participation
opportunities for the owners of critical hub sites
in all markets including emerging markets.

differentiate your solutions from competitive
RMS why is it so important that your solution
is built on an automated server architecture
base rather than an IP base?
the direction already in place in the electrical Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon Lee Cantley, VP Sales & Marketing, Caryon
infrastructure. As one example of a perennial Development: The US FirstNet and other public Development: We firmly believe that tower
problem we address, copper theft is a US$2 safety programs will help identify critical tower monitoring must be intelligent at the tower
billion problem and the theft of copper wiring locations and encourage or require system thereby creating Smart Towers. Communication
and grounding bars from cell sites is a significant hardening at those locations. Hardening a site towers are key infrastructure systems on which
element of that statistic. Perhaps even more includes many of the functions in the Caryon we rely as citizens and businesses as well as
importantly, removal of copper cabling and Towerhawk systems. These towers must function public agencies. There are millions of dollars
grounding bars from a tower site leaves the entire during natural disasters and other critical events. invested in on-site carrier and tower equipment
infrastructure at the site vulnerable to lightning at all towers that must function seamlessly on a
strikes and the consequent damage. Theft of fuel All Towerhawk systems are designed to be continuing basis. This cannot be done effectively
from sites is a similar high value problem that public safety oriented and FirstNet ready. utilising IP based systems that rely on simplified
we can address with accurate real time fuel level Imagine a public safety incident that relies on on-site connections without on-site intelligence.
reporting, alarming and site surveillance and first responder communication capability and/
recording. or massive public notification. Take for example This responsibility can only be accomplished by
an area hit by hurricane. The first responder on-site intelligent digital control systems that can
TowerXchange: What role can Smart Towers and tower systems are online before the disaster be programmed for precise data responsiveness,
play in public safety networks? How does and can be checked and serviced. Monitoring monitor key functions using on-site measuring
government interest in critical hub towers add capabilities verify that systems are functioning programs and transmit intelligent information
value to those sites? and generators ready. During and after the seamlessly

How to reduce opex with
TowerXchange: Please introduce us to AIO
Systems, its offering and footprint.
ZERO capex while benefitting Asher Avissar, CEO, AIO Systems: AIO Systems was
established in 2006 by a core team of professionals
from a top RMS solution with many years of work experience in the field,
who realised there was no comprehensive RMS
solution available in the market.
And how to secure remote cell sites
AIO Systems responded to the need for an integrated
While the telecom industry moves swiftly towards an era of
system to manage remote, unmanned sites in a cost-
unmanned, remotely located sites, MNOs and tower companies
effective way, while using technologies which enable
need partners capable of responding to their growing need for
monitoring, control, management and automated
cutting-edge remote management and monitoring solutions. AIO
optimisation.
Systems was established to offer telecom companies worldwide
next generation solutions to control inaccessible sites, while still
AIO Systems solution has sixteen distinct modes of
delivering excellent RoI.
operation, each suited for specific needs, per site and
per client. It interconnects with up to 76 elements
With over fifteen years of international experience in the field,
of equipment on the site, instantly and effortlessly.
Asher Avissar co-founded AIO Systems with the goal of creating
AIOs capability to integrate advanced technologies,
a leading organisation able to offer its clients not only first class
our thorough understanding of the clients needs,
products, but also tangible financial benefits.
as well as the human factor of our outstanding
operational workforce, make AIO the leader in its
Keywords: AIO Systems, Interview, Monitoring &
field.
Management, Access Control, Energy, Africa, Eastern
Europe, Asia, Central America, South America, Hybrid
AIO Systems has a proprietary solution for in-
Power, Security, RMS, KPI, RoI, Investment, OPEX, CAPEX,
building which enables management companies to
Asher Avissar, CEO, AIO Systems Towercos, MNOs
maximise the value of their managed assets. Our
solution is the clients ERP for comprehensive and
Read this article to learn: efficient management of a variety of assets, in a
< The financial and operational benefits of a cutting edge RMS solution number of optional business models which could
< The key features of a robust security solution for remote sites prove relevant to the agreements between the tower
< AIOs zero capex service model management companies and their clients.
< The adoption of hybrid energy solutions in Latin America and globally
To date, AIO is active in Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia

and Latin America. We started operations in LatAm
in 2012 and currently we are in various stage of sales
process with seven major clients on that continent.
AIO has installed 48,000 bases worldwide, mostly in

the telecom segment but we also have a few patented
solutions in other industries such as Oil and Gas, and
Smart Grids (Power Utility).
TowerXchange: Who are your main target clients

in Latin America?
Asher Avissar, CEO, AIO Systems: Our target market

segment in LatAm are the tower management
companies to which we offer a comprehensive
package with significant added value. The variety
of convenient deal schemes we are able to offer,
combined with the proven track record worldwide,
gives clients the confidence to choose AIO as the
preferred solution for such critical tasks. However,
AIO also offers great value to MNOs, especially in the AIO System remote site security system
fields of security and workforce efficiency.
to control and management of infrastructure, will identify if an unauthorized person is trying to
TowerXchange: Explain to our readers your Total delivers access control, video surveillance, alarm enter the site. The system will take the following
Security Solution and what its key advantages are. and perimeter security as well as triggering active actions if it identifies unauthorized entrance: video
and passive security elements, generating automated recording, turning on outdoor lights, automatic
Asher Avissar, CEO, AIO Systems: AIOs security alerts to nearby patrols and command centres. voice communication with the NOC to enable direct
solution is designed to handle in excess of a thousand communication between the command centre and
remote unmanned sites. AIOs challenge is to deliver Specifically, the solution consists of three layers of hostile trespassers on site, automated alert sent to
an affordable, yet professional solution, which will security. The first, external layer identifies intruders nearby security patrols.
fulfil a variety of security needs. near to the site by various security elements such as:
external cameras, outdoor motion detectors, beam Upon intrusion, the internal second layer security
Distant sites often cannot be allocated the same sensors detecting human presence near the fence circle will be activated by various elements such
security solutions as manned indoor facilities. surrounding the site. Upon first layer alert, by means as: indoor motion detector, magnetic door sensor,
Therefore, AIO offers a controller which, in addition of our intelligent access control solution, the system shock sensor, spring sensor and fuel-cover sensor.

The following security actions will be taken indoors: for the service - not for the equipment. This type
video recording, pepper spray, high decibel siren, site of model is very attractive to many of our clients
lights and an urgent alert sent to security patrols. The worldwide, and we are planning to launch it in Latin
solution includes visible as well as hidden tamper- America as well. Additional models can be discussed
proof elements, and is offered in various business with each client to suit their specific needs.
models such as long-term service agreements. The
price is moderate compared with the benefits to the TowerXchange: Please tell us about your Hybrid The systems algorithms
client. Management solution. How do you ensure ROI
channels maximum energy
TowerXchange: Please tell us about AIO Systems
service model.
Asher Avissar, CEO, AIO Systems: AIO offers its

clients attractive deal schemes which enable them
within a few months of its deployment?
Asher Avissar, CEO, AIO Systems: AIOs hybrid

solution optimizes energy consumption by
automatically choosing between several sources. In
order to dramatically reduce power consumption
with minimum cost, and we
have achieved results of 48%
reduction in energy expenses
for our clients

to benefit from our technology without any capital of remote sites, AIO uses alternative sources such as
or budgetary investment. The benefit is not solely LFP batteries, solar energy, wind turbines, and so on.
financial; in fact, our clients benefit from AIOs The systems algorithms channels maximum energy
ongoing commitment in the implementation of the with minimum cost, and we have achieved results
system and its related work processes. of up to 48% reduction in energy expenses for our TowerXchange: Are hybrid energy solutions
clients. With such sharp decrease in expenses, the in demand in Latin America? Which clients/
Our teams escort the client, hand-in-hand, for 24-48 return on investment for the system can be reached countries are adopting this model?
months to meet their KPIs, and the client pays only within as little as several months.
Asher Avissar, CEO, AIO Systems: There is a global
awareness to carbon footprint and reduction of
energy consumption. The environmental issues
are gaining momentum, and the costs of energy in
operating remote sites are heavy, both in financial
terms as well as environmental. In addition,
reducing costs of maintenance and prolonging
the lifespan of equipment is a major concern in
operating large-scale infrastructure. These issues are
valid all over the world, as well as in Latin America.
Together with the other elements of our solution -
AIO delivers its clients significant savings both in the
AIO System NOC
short and in the long term

Wireless sensors
In order to reduce risk, companies that operate cell
sites equip them with Remote Management Systems
(RMS) for monitoring and management of all
as a deployment accelerator mobile towers directly from a Network Operations

Center (NOC).
Reduce installation costs, enable remote configuration and eliminate cable theft
Using sensors connected to onsite equipment like
using azetis SONARPLEX technology the HVAC (for example controlling temperature and
humidity), generator sets, fuel tanks or the intruder
Operating a telecom network is a challenging detection system, the NOC obtains mission-critical
task. Due to the great number of mobile towers information on the condition of certain onsite
that contain a wide variety of onsite equipment, components. This helps to adjust maintenance
the risk that a single component fails or is intervals to an efficient level by reducing
removed is always threat. This could lead to the unnecessary truck rolls. In case of malfunction,
complete shutdown of one or more cell sites or field engineers can be sent to the site concerned
even a complete network failure. The resulting immediately in order to prevent complete
costs associated with SLAs and downtime,
shutdown or restore functionality quickly.
repairing damaged equipment, replacing stolen
equipment, and the workforce management
Deployment - cabling
of field engineers means there is a significant
The installation of sensors combined with an RMS
financial risk for operators.
requires knowledge, time and, in the case of wired
sensors, cabling! These factors can increase the
Keywords: Whos Who, Monitoring
rollout costs tremendously as cabling is a time and
& Management, Installation, Opex
resource intensive process. If this critical part of an
Reduction, Batteries, Business Case,
RMS rollout is not done well, then additional costs
SLA, Uptime, Site Visits, NOC, RMS,
and time delays can be expected.
NexSysOne, azeti
The deployment of wireless sensors addresses

the aforementioned challenges within the rollout
Read this article to learn: process. By installing wireless sensors that are
< The business case for RMS based on the ZigBee protocol, the rollout time
< How wireless sensors facilitate easier installation while eliminating cable theft at each site can be cut significantly. In addition,
< The low maintenance requirements of azetis sensors the wireless feature enhances the flexibility of
< The importance of selecting RMS solutions that are sensor agnostic placing a sensor, enabling the optimisation of
sensor readings. Even if it was placed at the wrong

remotely from the NOC. This easy installation of those engineers by helping them on the spot to
makes additional help of a consultant or further detect the sensors, which need maintenance.
training for field technicians unnecessary,
contributing to a lean cost structure of the rollout Sensor agnostic
process. The azeti NG M2M Multipurpose Gateway supports
Wireless sensors (ZigBee) improve common industry standard protocols for sensor
Cable theft communication including ZigBee. Operators of
an RMS roll-out by eliminating the
A major issue is cable theft. Since many of the cell sites have the full flexibility to choose and
cabling requirement as well as
cables are made from copper, there is a clear deploy any sensors that meets their requirements.
making the configuration process incentive to steal and sell the wires, since the prices In addition, to switch from one sensor vendor
as simple as possible. This leads to of raw materials rise steadily. Especially in remote to another is a simple process and provides the
a faster deployment and reduced areas, it is difficult to protect onsite equipment possibility to deploy the latest generation sensors.
installation costs. Relocating sensors including the cables. Thieves are aware of the low
of site setup tremendously, whilst

is easy and increases the flexibility
the risk of cable theft (and associated

downtime) is completely removed
risk being caught by the police or any security
company. If are cables removed, wired sensors fail
to work, which could lead to damage the site. The
wireless connectivity feature lowers the risk based
on the fact that without cables, which can be sold
Conclusion
Wireless sensors (ZigBee) improve an RMS roll-out
by eliminating the cabling requirement as well
as making the configuration process as simple as
possible. This leads to a faster deployment and
easily on local markets, there is no incentive for reduced installation costs. Relocating sensors is
cable theft. easy and increases the flexibility of site setup
tremendously, whilst the risk of cable theft (and
Maintenance associated downtime) is completely removed.
location, it is easy to replace the sensor again while Apart from the equipment to be monitored at the
not losing time for recabling. This has the potential cell site, sensors need occasional maintenance. azetis SONARPLEX technology for remote
for significant savings during the rollout process, With azetis SONARPLEX technology, the battery monitoring and management of distributed cell
especially in large deployments with a couple of life of the wireless sensors can be displayed sites provides the advantages of wireless sensor
thousand sites. with the ability to notify the maintenance staff connectivity while preserving its capabilities of
if a battery has to be changed, which demands connecting to wired sensors and legacy hardware.
Deployment - configuration only a screwdriver and takes two minutes. The The obtained information of every sensor at the site
The configuration of wireless ZigBee sensors is notification allows for an efficient planning of can be processed locally by SONARPLEX running
also a fast and easy task. Once connected with the maintenance tasks, so that field engineers can on the azeti NG M2M Multipurpose Gateway. This
azeti NG M2M Multipurpose Gateway, the sensor take care of the sensors while they are at the site enables to forward only useful information to
is detected automatically with no further need of anyway. the NOC, where the data of the entire network is
an adjustment by the field technician at the site. consolidated using the NeXsysOne SiteOne NOC
Everything else regarding the setup can be done azetis mobile application can facilitate the work software

Site Management - Made Intelligent
azeti Networks enhances the features of

SiteOne by enabling the support of wireless
sensors. This facilitates the roll-out process
Remote Site
by saving time to install sensors while also
making cables unnecessary.
Management
As
you have
never
seen it
before
Special Feature:
Rooftops, masts and

towers, part 4
Henrik Kamstrup of Intelli Towers lifts the lid on the structural due
diligence that goes into evaluating tower portfolios, and shares some
trade secrets about how to find additional wind load capacity in
existing towers without having to invest in structural enhancements.
Also in this edition, Arlin Bleclic, President of CLEARGOL Towers

Brazil puts forward the controversial opinion that some of Brazils
towers might be unsuitable for upgrade to accommodate multiple
tenants. Do you agree?
TowerXchange also chats with Intelli Site Solutions, who operate a

portfolio of rooftops, billboards and towers in Mexico, in which we
learn about the volume of demand for new towers, and for IBS, in
the coveted Mexican market.
Finally, we also introduce TowerXchange readers to global tower

provider Orion.
Dont miss:
167 Intelli Towers explain how to minimise the total cost of
evaluating and strengthening existing towers
171 CLEARGOL: Can Brazilian towers accommodate multiple
tenants?
175 Intelli Site Solutions provide a neutral host to accelerate
time to market for Mexican carriers
179 Orion: From boutique manufacturer to global tower provider

How to minimise the total
TowerXchange: What is your experience on
various tower assessments in emerging markets?
cost of evaluating and Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers: A site

assessment must always be an objective exercise in
strengthening existing towers

order to provide the correct judgement of the tower.
If a tower-supplier and/or executing subcontractor
are hired for the assignment, the focus can be of
Taking advantage of the latest research and norms will minimise upgrade costs various characters and not the optimal solution
for the towerco since the core expertise for these
TowerXchange always enjoys a dialogue with companies is the onsite build and not the static
Henrik Kamstrup and his team at Intelli Towers, analyses.
a unique analysis and design engineering
company that focuses on tower values, designs, Also it is of importance that the tower assessment
lifetime and capacity upgrades. Over the years, is done in a proper way as the consequences can be
Henrik has experienced that towercos often huge. We have seen examples where pictures are
dont get a correct impression of their tower linked to a report about the site, but the pictures
assets due to low quality assessments reports are from another site - and pictures are important
and fake pictures. evidence and part of the basic information for
the static analysis. In all cases, it is important that
what is measured and pictured on site, is the same
Keywords: How to Guide, Strategic Consultancy, information provided in the static analysis. In
Valuation, Due Diligence, Capacity Enhancements, our system, we have a feature that automatically
Risk, Loading, Health & Safety, Foundations, Data uploads the pictures taken at the exact location
Room, Build-to-Suit, Wind, Site Visits, Site Surveys, using its coordinates, which is why configuration
Sale & Leaseback, Masts & Towers, Asset Register, and safety issues are eliminated.
Africa, Intelli Towers
Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers
We have seen several assessment reports looking
very nice and using to standard reports and tools,
Read this article to learn: but looking into the content and details its worth
< How you might be cheated by a very nice-looking asset register nothing due to the data input being wrong or tools
< That nearly all towers can be utilised more are not used correctly. But from a laymans point of
< How to increase tower capacity without strengthening view it looks impressive and that is a disaster as the
< The key-points you should focus on when evaluating a tower portfolio towerco should be able to rely on these assessments
and plan their investments accordingly.

TowerXchange: Tell us what is of importance for
the towercos, whether they are buying, or just
maintaining towers?
Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers: It is of high

importance that the selected executing parties work
in an objective way with one focus only: to verify
that the existing tower and foundation has the
necessary bearing capacity/strength without any
need for reinforcements or tower swaps. Further,
it is of high importance to verify the remaining
life time of the total structure (including the
foundation) and that the tower is safe. Important
structural items to consider when buying:
< Is existing documentation available and is it

liable?
< Does the existing documentation include:

< Tower geometry
< Profile and bolt dimensions
< Steel quality/strength
< Loading and levelling
< Production place and date of the tower Disorganised installation: significant tower capacity can be gained simply by organising a random installed cable spread in order to
< Date of erection on site minimise its wind surface and optimise its placement in the tower with regards to the actual wind direction. With practical on site
optimisation strategies, together with usage of all allowed theoretical aspects in the Norms, the capacity gain in the towers can be
< Pictures of assembly significant for a minimum of cost
< Pictures of foundation depth and
reinforcement before concrete casting Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers: Todays overall) for the exact physical site location, provides
< Pictures of final foundation before backfill research has changed the safety philosophy so great savings. This is not just a theoretical exercise,
(if used) we can reduce the uncertainties around some as it will mature into significant savings on upgrade
< Geotechnical report parameters, whereas in the old days we had to by using state of the art design research, norms and
be on the safe side. Using the latest norms and experience.
TowerXchange: How can Intelli Towers increase proven methods of optimised calculated effective
tower capacity without physical and costly wind areas of antennas, cables, MWs et cetera, and TowerXchange: Give us some examples of where
strengthening of the towers? further using the actual wind speed (and not an strengthening is most effective?

experience, 10-20% would be sufficient but the final
number depends on the total amount of towers with
a globally chosen spread across the country or area
of the tower placements. It is important to confirm
whether there is an overload of the same design of
towers within the chosen 10-20% or not. If not, the
case probably requires expert support.
TowerXchange: We recently featured an

interview in which it was suggested that a
number of towers sold in Brazil may not be
suitable for upgrade and co-location whats
your view on that?
Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers: We have

encountered a very few towers which need to
be dismantled and replaced. Weve designed
rectification projects for old corroded towers
erected in the 1970s and 80s and even then you can
often extend both the towers lifetime and capacity.
So I would be surprised if there were that many
towers in Brazil that could not be upgraded for
co-location. And as said before: Its now possible to
take advantage of the latest research and usage of
the latest norms.
Rusty towers: rusty towers do still have several years of remaining lifetime which can be determined by Intelli Towers in order to
calculate the value of the tower. However, the strength will decrease over the years, which is why Intelli Towers provide the capacity
programme in order to ensure that the loading never becomes higher than the actual current limit
TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up what you
think should be the priorities when evaluating a
Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers: In the cases limited compared to simple V-lattice towers. portfolio of telecom towers.
where strengthening is necessary, the greatest effect
you will receive usually comes from the most simply TowerXchange: What do you think should be the Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers: There are
designed towers, i.e. towers with as few members minimum sample size for a site assessment in a several key questions I believe buyers and investors
as possible. Having multi-profile towers, such as due diligence phase? in towers should consider:
transmission-towers with a multiple secondary 1. How trustworthy is the sellers asset register?
bracings, means the effect of reinforcement is Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers: In our 2. Do you have the correct estimated value of the

assets and on what basis?
3. Is there sufficient bearing tower and foundation
capacity available for the placement of future
tenants?
4. Do you need to build clauses into the deal to
protect yourself against substantial deviations
between what is reported and what is actually on
any sites you do not visit during the due diligence
process?
5. Do you have to invest substantial capital
to strengthen the towers you are considering
acquiring?
6. Once youve acquired the towers, how can you
add more bearing capacity at the lowest possible
cost?
7. How can you evaluate and update the existing
concrete, non-documented foundations at the
lowest possible cost?
8. How do you extend the lifetime of existing
structures, for example corroded towers along the
coastline?
9. When you participate in a build-to-suit program
for the future network expansions, which type of
towers and foundations (design, capacity, life time
and reusable foundations) do you need to install?
10. Do you know how to purchase and install the
markets most competitive towers and foundations? Dangerous cast-in bolts and nuts: existing cast-in bolts can be in a dangerous condition and are often subject to major problems and
high costs if not rectified in time. It can be difficult to see but is crucial to the tower value when buying. Intelli Towers has invented an
effective rectification program for corrosion challenges
The most important consideration isnt the cost
of the static analysis, the most important thing is 1. The upgrade costs by reducing the capital latest norms and standards correctly, and by
total cost of the project and the time line. If you deployed per tower e.g. from US$20,000 simply taking into account the correct location
accept a minor extra spend on static analyses and to US$5,000 or less. As mentioned we have of the actual tower and the load
thereby take advantage of our specialised software experienced several cases where you can 2. The built-to-suit cost of towers and foundations
and general expert experience, we can help the strengthen a tower for free (i.e. the cost of the 3. Losses in asset value due to limited lifetime of
towercos save significantly on: static analysis and no other cost) by using the purchased structures

Can Brazilian towers
TowerXchange: Please tell us about CLEARGOL,
its activities and footprint.
accommodate multiple tenants? Arlin Bleclic, President, CLEARGOL Towers Brazil:

Cleargol Technologies is a system integrator founded
Why US telecoms integrator CLEARGOL is exploring opportunities in Brazil in North America in 2008. Its footprint is mainly in
the mid-atlantic region comprising DC, Maryland and
Arlin Bleclic is the President of CLEARGOL Towers Brazil, Virginia among other states. We work with wireless
carriers and turnkey vendors to develop and build
a subsidiary of CLEARGOL Technologies Inc. a U.S. based
telecom sites and, additionally, we have expertise in
system integrator. Thanks to his entrepreneurship and
specific areas such as VoIP and other internet-based
personal ties to Brazil, he has recently embarked on a
activities. However, our main focus is on the tower
journey to enable his companys expertise and technical
construction industry. CLEARGOL employs forty-five
abilities to serve the ever-growing Brazilian telecom tower people in North America.
industry. In this exclusive interview, Arlin shares with us
his views on the tower construction business in Brazil, key We have recently decided to enter the Brazilian
differences between the U.S. and Brazilian tower industry market. This business decision came in light of
and expectations for his new venture. the continuous expansion of its national telecom
industry. In fact, we believe that to date, there are
more growth opportunities in Brazil than in North
Keywords: CLEARGOL Technologies, CLEARGOL
America.
Towers Brazil, Interview, Brazil, South America, North
America, USA, Passive Equipment, System Integrator,
In Brazil, we will focus our attention on the tower
Towers, Construction, Installation, Acquisition, Co-
construction and maintenance business. However,
locations, Capacity Enhancements, Market Entry, Build-
we are also considering the acquisition of a small
to-Suit, Business Case, Retrofitting, Site Surveys, Skilled
tower portfolio. Currently, we have a team of seven
Workforces, American Tower, SBA Communications
Arlin Bleclic, President, CLEARGOL Towers Brazil people active in Brazil and this is likely to increase
as we start developing projects. Our goal is to start
working in the field by Q3 of this year.
< How a niche U.S. system integrator is transferring its knowledge to Brazil We are currently in talks with three Brazilian system
< Main differences between the Brazilian and North American telecom tower industry integrators/construction companies that we are
< The structural inadequacy of many Brazilian towers to host multiple tenants considering acquiring. These acquisitions would give
< How a web-based system supported by processes can boost a companys credibility us an opportunity to take over a fairly large portfolio
of projects and clients. These companies have

the right contracts in place with key stakeholders Another challenge in Brazil is that lots of contractors
in Brazilian towers, but they lack the funds and can be very skilled when it comes to building sites,
experience to take them to the next level. This is but they dont know how to handle the related
what CLEARGOL will focus on. paperwork. I am referring to site packages, site
pictures and other necessary documents that some
TowerXchange: Who are your main clients and in There are hundreds of towers in companies just dont seem to know how to manage.
which countries do you operate? Brazil being transferred to towercos CLEARGOL developed its own system and procedures
Arlin Bleclic, President, CLEARGOL Towers Brazil:

In North America, we work with major carriers and
turnkey vendors.
In Brazil, we currently have one member of staff

tenants. These towers were built
and they simply cannot handle the

wind load of more than one tenant

which arent suited to host multiple
following old engineering principles

which greatly simplify every aspect related to
paperwork and bureaucracy.
In Brazil, we are bringing systems and processes

which took us years to establish, and we believe that
the telecom industry will benefit from the presence
developing our business by talking to all major of an experienced integrator.
tower companies such as American Tower and SBA
Communications. At this stage, we are going through TowerXchange: Are new towers in Brazil
the qualification process with them in order to be In Brazil, demand for towers is greater than the generally being designed to host multiple tenants?
able to acquire their projects. supply. There is a huge need for experienced
contractors able to meet the growing demand to Arlin Bleclic, President, CLEARGOL Towers Brazil:
TowerXchange: Can you give us a comparison build new towers. In fact, as of now, Brazilian There are hundreds of towers in Brazil being
between the North American and the Brazilian towercos are still more focused on the leasing transferred to towercos which arent suited to host
telecom tower industries? aspect of the business rather than on build-to-suit multiple tenants. These towers were built following
(BTS) projects. CLEARGOL wants to fill that gap and old engineering principles and they simply cannot
Arlin Bleclic, President, CLEARGOL Towers Brazil: become the leading contractor dealing with most of handle the wind load of more than one tenant.
First of all, most of the tower related work in the the tower construction work in Brazil. This is an important issue for towercos looking at
States comes from large system integrators whereas monetizing their portfolio acquisitions. In the U.S.
this isnt yet the case in Brazil. I would say Brazil In the US just like in Brazil, there are several there are better managed central databases to store
is an open landscape still being shaped. This is the construction companies trying to compete against information related to sites, and most towers are
main reason we decided to create an opportunity to each other. I believe that a lot of them lack the suitable for the co-location of multiple carriers
establish our local presence, and focus on our core knowledge of technology and active equipment- equipment.
skill-set of building and managing sites. related aspects of the network, and are only focused
on the construction side of projects. Nowadays, To my knowledge most new towers in Brazil are
Health and safety standards and working conditions construction and technical skills need to go side being built to host multiple tenants.
are still a bit more challenging in Brazil than in the by side when developing projects for the telecom
U.S. industry. With regards to upgrading existing towers, there

management and maintenance, we are likely to work
with both depending on the nature of the project.
TowerXchange: Which states are you focusing on

in Brazil?

For now, we are focusing our attention on So Paulo,
Rio de Janeiro, Paran and Minas Gerais.
On one hand, this is due to the fact that the

contractors we are looking at acquiring are based in
these three states. Moreover, the states are host to
major metropolitan areas with several opportunities
for companies like ours.
This is the same approach we have followed in

the U.S., focusing on one specific area rather than
covering the whole country and then grow our
business from there.
TowerXchange: What is CLEARFLOW? And

how does it optimise the flow of information
between the different stakeholders in the passive
infrastructure ecosystem?
A screenshot of CLEARFLOW
isnt always the right business case to invest, comes from carriers vs towercos? Arlin Bleclic, President, CLEARGOL Towers Brazil:
so some towers are literally being rebuilt from CLEARFLOW is a web-based system we created to
scratch. Ultimately, this is a business decision tower Arlin Bleclic, President, CLEARGOL Towers Brazil: store and update information related to the lifecycle
companies need to make as they discover these In the U.S., it really depends on each specific project of each project we develop. A system without
issues, taking into account the related engineering and I expect it to be the same in Brazil. processes is nothing and CLEARFLOW is supported
cost and the potential revenue each specific tower Ideally, we would like to work directly with carriers by a strong set of procedures we have set up over the
can generate. but when sites are owned by towercos, it depends on years to streamline our workflow.
the structure of their contract. In fact, as carriers and
TowerXchange: What percentage of your work towercos split responsibilities with regards to site Thanks to CLEARFLOW and our internal expertise,

we are able to track every single aspect related to a
project, including site acquisition, health and safety
concerns, zoning issues, the status of each license,
stock of material, contractors management, et cetera.
Its a very solid web-based system which supports an
experienced and organized team.
With CLEARFLOW we are able to generate daily

reports on the progress of a specific project, load
pictures of new sites as they are being constructed,
send these details to the client in real time, produce
final reports at the end of the project as required by
carriers and, in general, communicate to our clients
and contractors important information without
wasting any time.

would differentiate CLEARGOL from other TI
providers?

CLEARGOL is becoming a stable partner for telecom
companies looking at developing new projects in
Brazil. Our past performance in the U.S. serves as a
Visit the TowerXchange.com website
great reference to fully understand the quality and
< Access to the Internet of People in emerging market < A comprehensive archive of TowerXchanges
commitment we put in every project.
towers a trust web of over 5,500 decision makers in interviews and analyses, searchable by topic, country,
passive infrastructure company or grouped by category (e.g. interviews or
I also believe that CLEARFLOW sets up apart from how to guides)
the competition. Having a powerful in-house tool < Independent analysis and commentaries on the
combined with skilled personnel with years of prospects for tower transactions in selected countries < The latest news and registration information about
experience in North America is a definitive plus TowerXchanges Meetups.
< The latest industry emerging market tower industry
We build and develop sites. And along with it, we
strive to keep track of every aspect of our work,
news BEFORE its published in the TowerXchange
Journal, accessible 24/7 from desktop, tablet or mobile Tower Xchange
update our clients regularly and keep innovating

Rooftops, billboards and
TowerXchange: Please introduce Intelli
Site Solutions - what role do you play in the
telecoms infrastructure ecosystem?
IBS offer accelerated time to Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions:
market for Mexican carriers We are a neutral host, a provider of telecoms

infrastructure for outdoor and indoor coverage.
Intelli Site Solutions leverages relationships with local real estate developers to offer a
Intelli Site Solutions is a young, local company,
database of 4,000 potential sites well connected with the major commercial
developers and real estate players in Mexico,
Network planning isnt just about towers. Increasing which has enabled us to create some interesting
data consumption is driving a requirement for agreements for outdoor and indoor installations.
additional capacity, particularly in dense urban areas
such as Mexico City and Monterrey - and LTE will We have a database of over 4,000 locations,
increase the need for cell site densification. Rooftops, primarily rooftops and billboards, plus a few mini-
billboards, mini-towers and IBS will play an increasingly towers and monopoles and approximately 200 self-
important role in radio network planning - not as supported & guyed towers with an average height
a substitute for macro towers, but as an invaluable of 60m or 200ft. These can be developed to help
supplement. Intelli Site Solutions offer new ideas for carriers improve capacity, particularly in dense
quick and low cost infrastructure deployments. urban areas and in exclusive developments where
its difficult for carriers to extend their coverage.
Keywords: Whos Who, Steelwork, Passive Equipment,
4G, Network Rollout, Densification, Permits, We undertake site acquisition and complete the
Retrofitting, Rooftop, IBS, Americas (North), Mexico, turnkey project. We own our infrastructure, and
Telcel, Telefnica, Iusacell, Nextel, Intelli Site Solutions lease space on those structures so carriers can add
Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions
their equipment and quickly get on air.
Read this article to learn: TowerXchange: What are the advantages of

< A snapshot of an alternate breed of infraco: leasing rooftops and billboards in dense urban areas rooftops and billboards over macro sites?
< The benefits of rooftops and billboards in terms of cost and time to market
< The progress of LTE deployment in Mexico Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions:
< Demand for 600-1,000 new sites per carrier per year in Mexico Zoning and permitting towers is complicated - we
< The market for IBS in Mexico prefer to think outside the box. Using rooftops
and billboards gives us a huge advantage in terms

of time to market compared to macro sites, which
are subject to long processes of site acquisition.
We can also leverage our relationships and
agreements with real estate developers to offer
sites at very competitive rates.
TowerXchange: Who are your target clients?
Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions: Our

clients are Mexicos four major carriers.
We believe there are other potential clients

including Internet and wireless broadband service
providers.
We are also closely watching the development

of the public wholesale network announced by
the Mexican government (are)

planning on developing a
wholesale LTE network, using
the 700MHz band, enabling
regional service providers to
the Mexican government. Theyre planning on
developing a wholesale LTE network, using the
700MHz band, enabling regional service providers
Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions:
Our database of potential locations is mapped and
made available to our clients so they can analyze
to offer LTE services. Its an ambitious plan, and it against their radio network plans, and identify
offer LTE services the scale and timeframe of the project are not yet points where they need help with coverage or
clear. capacity.
TowerXchange: How are Intelli Site Solutions Once a site has been selected, we conduct the site
sites marketed to potential clients? surveys and plan civil works. Intelli Site Solutions

other major cities. Most of the smaller towns and
main roads are covered, and dont have the same
need for cell site densification given the relatively
low traffic.
It is also important to mention that there are

still large areas of the country that are lacking
coverage particularly rural areas.
TowerXchange: How would you characterize

the status of LTE deployment in Mexico?
Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions:

Telcel has a large LTE rollout, with substantial
Intelli Site Solutions coverage map

Mexico City is our most active
and dynamic market, where
network planner preferences
are shifting towards quick
has our own in-house engineering and design
team, but we use third party contractors for civil
works and maintenance.
TowerXchange: What is driving demand for

need more capacity, particularly in dense urban
areas. Mexico City is our most active and dynamic
market, where network planner preferences
are shifting towards quick deployments and
rooftops, especially for LTE which requires cell
deployments and rooftops,
especially for LTE which
requires cell site densification

supplementary sites? site densification. Monterrey is also key; another
densely populated city where LTE is already being
Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions: rolled out. 60-70% of the activity is in those big two
Increasing data consumption means carriers cities, but theres a lot going on in Guadalajara and

coverage in the major cities and currently are deployed at pinpoint locations according to
entering new markets. Telefnica is rolling out demand.
this year (2014), and are currently moving from
trial to rollout. Nextel are in a similar position. Its a growing market with positive outlook, but
some carriers prioritize IBS more than others.
One of the barriers to LTE is the planning of the
network because the spectrum availability is
Intelli Site Solutions uses TowerXchange: Does Intelli Site Solutions offer
limited. Smartphone penetration in Mexico is also infrastructure innovations to services beyond Mexico, or have any plans to
relatively low compared to many countries, and offer coverage where carriers do so in the future?
purchasing power is limited in smaller towns and need it - not just typical macro
rural areas. Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions: Of
tower sites. This enables us to
course we are interested to expand, but we believe
TowerXchange: Given that Telcel owns the accelerate time to market and there is plenty of work to be done in Mexico.
largest network in Mexico, and all the other
carriers have sold towers, does that affect each
carriers appetite for co-locations on towers
and rooftops? Whats the demand for new sites
in Mexico?
offer low cost solutions to our
clients. We have a database of
4,000 potential sites ready to
have infrastructure deployed
Once growth slows in Mexico, well look for other
markets. But for the moment, our priority is to
consolidate and fulfill the full potential of the
indoor and outdoor market in Mexico.
TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how

Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions: you would differentiate Intelli Site Solutions
Youre right that all the carriers except Telcel have from competitive telecoms infrastructure
sold most of their towers, mainly to American companies.
Tower. Telcel still builds their own sites, and
sometimes they use providers like us for specific TowerXchange: What role does DAS and other Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions: We
requirements. The other carriers are mainly IBS play in network planning in Mexico? are a local company - well connected, with solid
focused on co-locations or build-to-suit. agreements with real estate developers and real
Felipe de Antuano, CEO, Intelli Site Solutions: estate companies.
Demand for new sites is incredible in Mexico. There is huge demand for in building coverage.
The pending reforms might have slowed demand Intelli Site Solutions uses infrastructure
slightly in Q1 2014, but appetite for investment While new real estate projects have IBS innovations to offer coverage where carriers need
continues - each carrier is adding around 600- implemented within architectural designs, there it - not just typical macro tower sites. This enables
1000 new sites per year. For our main two carrier is a substantial retrofit market, mostly in large us to accelerate time to market and offer low cost
clients, growth is driven more by capacity than office buildings, shopping malls, airports, arenas, solutions to our clients. We have a database of
coverage. stadiums and other venues that gather crowds 4,000 potential sites ready to have infrastructure
where carriers need coverage and capacity. IBS deployed

From boutique manufacturer TowerXchange: Where does ORION fit in the
telecom tower ecosystem?
to global tower provider Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: First

of all, I want to salute all the participants in
How a local tower provider started serving the global telecom industry the TowerXchange meeting and TowerXchange
readers, and congratulate for the great work you
Orion started serving the Romanian and your team do in the field of telecom. Orion has
been working in the field of telecommunication
telecom industry in 1992, and over the
since its creation back in 1992, when the
years have expanded its operations into
main activity was integration of TV networks.
Europe, Africa and Latin America. In
Afterwards, Orion started acting as a turnkey
this interview, Andrei Pop, Commercial
telecom integrator in Romania and the Moldavian
Manager for the company, shares his Republic for customers such as Orange and
views on what it takes to become a global Cosmote.
tower provider at a time of constant
changes, increased tower demand and Nowadays, our main activity is the manufacturing
technological challenges. of steel structures for the telecom industry, all
the way from towers to small parts. This switch in
activities became a necessity for us when we got
Keywords: Orion, Interview, Romania,
involved in GSM network development.
Moldavian Republic, Orange, Cosmote,
Vodafone, Europe, Africa, Latin
To date, we are leaders in tower supply in Romania
America, Steelwork, Passive Equipment,
and over the past few years, we became the
Construction, Installation, Logistics, supplier of choice for Orange and Vodafone in
Procurement, Masts & Towers, Tower Europe, Africa and Latin America.
Manufacturer, Mobile Network
Operators, System Integrator TowerXchange: What is your telecom tower
Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion
manufacturing capacity and can you tell us
about some example clients?
< The history behind Orion global expansion, its footprint and operations Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: Orion has
< The cost of service and other key factors when selecting a tower provider a boutique factory with a manufacturing capacity
< Which towers are best suited for upgrading capacity for multiple tenants of 15.000 tons per year for angular towers and
around 7.000 tons per year for tubular towers.

however, we are very flexible and able to satisfy
each customer requirement to achieve the optimal
result.
TowerXchange: Talk us through the

manufacture, import and inland logistics
processes that take a tower from your factory to
a clients site - where does the delivery cost and
delivery time come from?
Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: Thanks to

a well established, long standing relationship with
our suppliers, we are able to acquire raw materials
in a swift and timely manner through our logistic
department, which allows us to launch tower
production in a relatively short time.
For our existing, recurring clients, we keep raw

materials in stock based on an estimated forecast
which allows us to start production in virtually no
time. For urgent cases, Orion is able to deliver 500
tons of telecom towers completed with accessories
Orions facilities in Romania
in fifteen days - which is a pretty quick turnaround.
Our clients are mainly turnkey integrators and do client requirements differ as you move from If our clients request it, we can handle the
we work as an accredited supplier of steel works region to region? transportation to sites but nowadays, most of our
for Orange and Vodafone. Additionally we clients have their own centralised procurement
are involved in several governmental projects Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: Yes, we departments which handle the logistic phase to
nationwide. do serve several European, African, Middle Eastern ensure control over operations and in order to save
and Central American countries. on shipments.
Moreover, we count on several reliable partners
which having been cooperating with us since we Every telecom integrator operates differently TowerXchange: Excuse the simplistic question,
launched our manufacturing facility. and each company analyses all the required but what are the tradeoffs when selecting
factors before developing a site using their own a steelwork partner - why are some towers
TowerXchange: I understand ORION has towers guidelines and criteria. It would definitely help to cheaper than others, what are the implications
installed in the Europe, Africa and LatAm - how have a standardised production process in place for lifetime and Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)?

Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: The cost
of service is definitely a key factor but other issues Participate in the
come into play such as the geographic position
of the supplier, its flexibility and speed of service TowerXchange
and definitely, the added value in terms of its
competence, expertise and level of communication
Towers based on seamless pipes
community
offered. Our company has years of experience and
high standard of quality which definitely help us
when it comes to acquiring new customers.
With regards to the price per tower, the key

component affecting the quotation is the raw
projects have the highest antenna
surface, therefore they are the
most suitable option for multiple
tenants from the first erection
Investors &
Tower
manufacture
& installation
Independent
material along with the required labour and advisers towercos
technology implemented.
TowerXchange: What is the tradeoff between

tailor made solutions to meet the specific antenna surface, therefore they are the most
Tower Xchange
requirements of each cell site versus installing suitable option for multiple tenants from the first
Decision
standard, and therefore lower cost, towers? erection. Angular towers are strong enough for Regulators makers
more than one operator as well. Moreover, they are & policy at
makers operators
Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: cheaper and lighter than tubular ones.
Standardised solutions represent the optimal Equipment
solution for both the manufacturer and the TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how you & managed
integrator. By following the same production would differentiate ORION from other tower services
guidelines for towers with different heights, manufacturers.

the manufacturer is able to decrease the cost of
production and, as a consequence, the final cost of Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: Orion
the tower. is a small company being handled like a family
business and our core values are based on quality, Join the TowerXchange LinkedIn group at
TowerXchange: What types of tower structures flexibility and reliability. Having this in our DNA,
www.linkedin.com/groups/
are suitable for upgrading capacity for multiple we are focused on establishing transparent and
tenants, and which arent? long term partnerships and as Ive personally TowerXchange-4536974
stated in our last advertising campaign we do not
Andrei Pop, Commercial Manager, Orion: Towers work as a steel structure supplier, we are your steel
based on seamless pipes projects have the highest production department

Special feature:
TowerPower - reducing energy opex

for emerging market telecom tower
operators, part seven
A fight has broken out within the pages of TowerXchange a face-off

between widely used lead-acid batteries supplied by Trojan Batteries,
and a vanadium redox energy storage solution offered by Imergy,
whose electrolyte lease model could enable flow battery technology to
breakthrough into the volume market.
Wed love to advertise another battle between wind, solar, fuel cells
and optimised grid power, but as we know these energy sources are
complimentary in many scenarios. Nonetheless in the wind corner
Bergey Windpower, whose solutions are powering over 1,000 cell
sites. In the fuel cell corner Ballard, who make the case for fuel cells
at rooftop and off grid cell sites. In the solar corner, Power-One, who
want to retrofit cell sites with PV arrays to slash diesel consumption.
Representing the case optimise use of grid power, TSi Power propose
an AVR and surge protection solution that critically increases the AC
input window from +/- 20% to +/- 30%, sufficient to ride out most voltage
variances even in countries like Nigeria.
Read all about it!

183 Bergey Windpower ask When does wind power make sense?
190 Ballard make the case for LatAm towercos to get more involved
in power
195 Power-One explain how hbrid energy can reduce or eliminate
diesel consumption
199 TSI Power explain how to make grid power more usable
204 Imergy offer a unique leasing option to drive vanadium redox
into the volume market
209 Trojan Battery as Are you choosing the right batteries?

When does wind power
TowerXchange: Please introduce Bergey
Windpower and in particular your experiences
in telecom energy.
makes sense? Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: We

Bergeys high quality wind turbines have paid for themselves many times over were under-capitalised when we launched back in
1977 - I remember my father asked me what was
In the 1970s, Karl Bergey, an aircraft designer-turned the smallest amount I could live on - I wish I hadnt
Professor of Aeronautical Engineering at the University of answered that question so honestly! After three
Oklahoma, was conducting feasibility studies looking at years of product development, we shipped our first
wind power. When the oil embargo hit the US, Karl was 1 kW turbine in 1980, our first for telecom in 1981,
tagged as an alternate energy expert. Meanwhile, son Mike our first 10 kW turbine for telecom in 1984, and
Bergey was studying Mechanical Engineering and leading a have been active in telecom energy ever since.
team that won the wind energy portion of an international
design competition. When Mike graduated in 1977, father Bergey Windpower is now an established and
and son launched Bergey Windpower, now the worlds stable supplier. Of Bergeys nine to ten thousand
leading manufacturer of small wind turbines, which are in installations worldwide, around a third are
use at over a thousand cell sites worldwide. telecom. The telecom industry represents the
largest customer base for our 1 kW units, for the
10 kW units the grid-tie segment is much larger.
Keywords: Whos Who, How to Guide, Energy, Opex
Reduction, Loading, Off-Grid, ROI, Hybrid Power,
TowerXchange: The first question our readers
Renewables, Solar, Wind, Retrofitting, DG Runtime,
always ask is how proven is the solution in the
Community Power, Africa, Americas (South), Americas
field, so please tell us about your deployment
(North), Asia, Kenya, China, China Mobile, Safaricom,
experiences, particularly in Africa, Latin
Bergey Windpower, Orange, Telkom Kenya
America and Asia.
Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower
Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower:

Read this article to learn: The use of our wind turbines in telecom is
< How much wind resource is needed to power a cell site with a 1.5-4.5 kW load? concentrated in emerging markets because were
< How to easily find out the wind resource available at a given location a well-matched solution for off-grid sites where,
< Experiences from the successful use of Bergey wind turbines at 55 Safaricom sites alone or alongside solar, wind power is able to
< Robust wind turbines lasting 30+ years versus low cost solutions that might last 2 years save a lot of opex compared with diesel. Bergey
< Up front capex versus lease models Windpower turbines have been installed in over
50 countries.

The highest concentration of our telecom sites Figure 1: Orange Telkom Kenya wind solar hybrid trial at six sites yielded
are in Asia. For 16 years we had an operation in KShs 10,736,719, or 90.5% diesel opex savings
China, where we built all our 1 kW turbines. Our
largest customer was China Mobile, and there
Site DG runtime hrs per day Opex per day (KShs) Diesel opex (KShs)
are around 300-400 cell sites with our turbines in
China, where it is common practice to use multiple Before After Before After Before After
1 kW solutions, rather than larger turbines, as
there is less concern about land usage. Smart Mt Kulal 24 0.04 6,750 12.77 2,639,250 4,995
Communications in The Philippines also uses 1 Pelekech 24 2.61 6,750 879.30 1,647,000 214,549
kW turbines at around 100 remote sites, for which
they won the first GSMA Green Power for Mobile Kakuma 24 1.07 6,750 360.83 1,552,500 82,991
award in 2008.
Nakobothan 24 3.05 6,750 1,030.78 1,620,000 247,387

Lokichoggio 24 5.05 6,750 1,704.06 1,802,250 454,984
Maparasha 24 0.91 6,750 306.82 2,598,750 118,125
Total 11,859,750 1,123,031
we recommend wind power at < Trial ran between 230 and 391 days
< Before sites ran 2 DEG consuming 2.5L/hr at KShs112.50/L at site
sites with average wind speeds
< After sites ran wind solar hybrid Source: WinAfrique Technologies
of 5.5-6mp/s (13mph) at a height
in the 80-100ft range, assuming Bergey Windpowers dealer in Nairobi, TowerXchange: How much wind is enough wind
the turbines will be mounted WinAfrique Technologies, were the first to to provide power to a cell site?
introduce small wind for remote cell sites in
on a separate tower. If we can
put wind turbine on top of an
existing 40m telecom tower, we
can be competitive with a lower
average wind speed
Africa. In 2007-8 Safaricom undertook a three
site pilot leading to the installation of Bergeys
10 kW turbines at 55 sites in Kenya. Wind was
the primary power source at each of those sites,
leading to a DG runtime saving of better than 80%.
WinAfrique also installed Bergey 7.5 kW turbines
Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: As a
rule of thumb for site selection, we recommend
wind power at sites with average wind speeds
of 5.5-6mp/s (13mph) at a height in the 80-100ft
range, assuming the turbines will be mounted on a
separate tower.
for Orange in Kenya and documented similar KPIs
at six trial sites (see Figure 1). In Africa we also If we can put wind turbine on top of an existing
have 7.5 kW turbines installed in South Africa, 40m telecom tower, we can be competitive with
Angola and Tanzania. a lower average wind speed. However, while our

turbines create no antenna interference issues or send us the co-ordinates and well tell you!

deflection problems for microwave backhaul, we
find that very few existing telecom towers have the Finding out the wind resource available at a given
structural headroom to hold a wind turbine large location used to be a big challenge data was very
enough to significantly lower the opex. One of poor quality in emerging markets as a result of
our R&D objectives is to develop the technology to meteorological equipment that was mounted too
control the thrust load, enabling us to retrofit wind Bergey have a few systems that low, or was poorly maintained. Therefore the wind
power turbines on more telecom towers. resources in many emerging markets have been
have been in situ for over 30
underestimated.
TowerXchange: Its a common misconception
years, and a lot that have been
that wind is an oversized energy solution for operating for over 20 years, all We have access to better wind maps now, with
cell sites given their typical load. Whats the with minimal maintenance and subscription services from companies who offer
range of load your turbines can support? And replacement component costs. worldwide modeling combining balloon data
whats the turbine size to output ratio?
Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: If

youre talking about micro cell sites with a 100W
load, then yes wind power is oversized. But as you
get to 1-3 kW of telecom equipment load, with air
The longevity of our turbines
means many of our systems
that have paid for themselves
four to six times over!
with GIS and flow modeling. Bergey Windpower
subscribes to a wind database from 3Tier and
weve integrated that data into our online design
tool called WindCAD. We provide our dealers and
partners free access all we have to do is enter a
longtitude, latitude and the height of the tower,
conditioning on top, a wind system can make a lot and we get an instant performance prediction.
of sense. Most of the cell sites were powering with
our 7.5/10 kW turbines are in the 1.5-4.5 kW range, Sometimes I think the telecom industry has no
often with some solar involved (although with idea how easy it is to evaluate a list of sites for
wind often the larger component). Seasonal issues The best lifecycle cost of energy is often achieved potential use of wind power if a network planner
mean that in some months youll have excess when youre providing 75% from renewables, and or towerco sends us an NDA and a site list, we can
energy, but were good at sizing systems for lowest 25% from backup diesel generators if you go tell them quickly which sites have sufficient wind
lifecycle cost of energy. higher than that you get into diminishing returns resources to be candidates for wind power.
as you waste more high capex wind and solar
At a typical wind resource site we run at a 20- generating capacity. TowerXchange: Can you give an idea of the
25% capacity factor. With controls, storage and typical payback for installing wind power at cell
conversion losses, the power available to support TowerXchange: How can carriers and towercos sites? And whats the longevity of your telecom
the telecom load is in the 1-2 kW range from a quickly assess whether a particular site might wind power solutions?
10kW wind turbine similar to solar. At a site with be a viable option for wind power?
a better wind resource, a capacity factor or 30-35% Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower:
enables 2-3 kW load range. Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: Just Bergey have a few systems that have been in

Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: We
prefer the dealership model, where we partner
with a local dealer for installation and after sales
support. 90% of our sales come through dealers,
including WinAfrique Tecnologies in East Africa,
Tricom Structures in South Africa, Wireless Chile
in South America, Mast-Och in Scandinavia, and AJ
Telecom in the Caribbean.
TowerXchange: How does the TCO of wind

compare with solar?
Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: The

typical payback in our telecom applications is in
the two to five year range, depending on the wind
resource and delivered cost of fuel.
Wind power isnt really in competition with solar

there are sites suitable for wind, sites suitable
for solar and sites where, even if solar panels
were free, it would make sense to exploit both
complimentary energy resources. After all, wind
speeds increase at night, during inclement weather
and during winter seasons when there are less
situ for over 30 years, and a lot that have been The key point is that this is not an experimental hours of sunshine per day.
operating for over 20 years, all with minimal technology; our turbines have a substantial track
maintenance and replacement component costs. record, supported by documented KPI studies The declining cost in solar is a near term
The longevity of our turbines means many of our and boat loads of data about fuel savings. When challenge, but in the long term it builds the
systems that have paid for themselves four to six other renewable energy solution providers claim a market for our wind turbines. The lower price
times over! hypothetical 90% DG runtime reduction, we have of solar encourages MNOs and towercos to put
the data to prove that our solutions work and they in solar instead of dual diesel gensets and more
We used to say that we designed solutions for a 30- work over time. aggressively pursue retrofits. But, if the site is
year lifespan, but theyre lasting longer than that at a higher or lower latitude then theres not
so we have no idea how long theyll last! TowerXchange: How do you sell, directly or enough solar resource in the winter to carry the
through dealers? load. And there are sites with rainy or cloudy or

rather than more solar, given the availability significant radio, battery and electronics system

of more hours of green energy supply and the vendors to better integrate monitoring and control,
smaller footprint of wind solutions (on a retrofit taking different approaches to energy storage
you can install a 10kW system with a foundation management, with a significant improvement in
footprint of around of 10m, and with a monopole battery longevity and TCO.
you could need as little as 4m). And of course
wind power has no theft issues whatsoever! Our Affordable Green Site initiative also includes
its become clear that capex and
a community power effort. This involves installing
opex budgets are often separate The economics of wind power are very sensitive a more powerful wind turbine to enable rural
saving opex doesnt necessarily to the wind resource. Performance goes up electrification, using a guyed tower which is
unlock additional money on the essentially as the square of the available wind safeguarded by the community because it also
capex side. As things stand, for resource where solar is linear. A small difference provides power to the school, water pump, or a
a given annual capex budget, in wind speed makes an exponential difference health clinic. Were trying to reduce equipment
in energy output for us. Good wind sites, with costs and provide some value to the local
operators can put in twice as
wind speeds of 6mp/s or more at the top of the community, and trying to escape the fortress
many brown power as green
power sites, so we need to move
toward a leasing approach and
take away the initial capex
burden
tower, have a cost advantage due to superior
capacity factors. BTS sites often have the best wind
resources in the area because the sites are elevated
and well exposed.
The challenge facing Bergey Windpower and our

approach to site security.
TowerXchange: Which financial model works

best in telecoms, an up-front capex or a lease
model?
competitors is to reduce the cost of wind to become Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower:
competitive at lower wind resource sites. From our dialogue with the telecom industry, its
become clear that capex and opex budgets are
TowerXchange: Tell us about your Affordable often separate saving opex doesnt necessarily
foggy seasons where the solar resource is much Green Site Program. unlock additional money on the capex side. As
reduced for months at a time. Every spring we things stand, for a given annual capex budget,
start getting calls from MNOs in the northern Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: The operators can put in twice as many brown power
hemisphere who had site reliability problems Affordable Green Site Program is our in-house as green power sites, so we need to move toward
over the winter. In the fall we get the calls for the R&D effort. Were trying to reduce the total cost of a leasing or financing approach and take away the
southern hemisphere! wind power to match the capital cost of dual diesel initial capex burden.
solutions for new rollouts, and to come up with an
Also as the load grows with new technologies and affordable retrofit solution. Bergey was the first company to have the lease
new tenants on towers, in many places it will be model available for grid-tie small wind, where
more cost effective to add capacity with wind Bergey Windpower is working with some were working with United Wind to lease 10kW

turbines to farmers and home owners. Leasing Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower:

has been game-changer in the grid-tie market, Bergeys core competency is wind power
and it will bleed over to off grid telecom. It will be technology, so wed prefer to supply to a company
interesting to see how this business model fits into that has the experience, resources and access to
the telco market. capital.
TowerXchange: Where would the capital come Third party leasing will have an impact, but an
from to enable a lease model for telecom wind alternate model would be for towercos and MNOs
power? to use export finance institutions, many of which
Its clearly better to invest
are willing to make low interest, long term loans
at a lower cost than the savings renewable energy in slightly more expensive
yields so a deployment could be cash flow solutions like Bergeys, which
positive from the get-go. last 30 or more years, than
TowerXchange: Finally, what differentiates a
premium wind solution like Bergeys from some
of the lower cost solutions in the market?
Mike Bergey, President, Bergey Windpower: In

cheap wind power solutions
that might last two years
the wind business more than anywhere else, you
get what you pay for. The initial capital outlay is
important of course, but reliability and ruggedness
are critical to ensuring your capital is invested
wisely. Its clearly better to invest in slightly always reliable, and went under. Id urge buyers
more expensive solutions like Bergeys, which to look for the track record of their potential
last 30 or more years, than cheap wind power supplier. Its rare that a CTO or his staff would
solutions that might last two years. Interestingly, understand wind technology deeply enough to sort
a significant segment of our telecom market is the wheat from chaff, so seek reliable third party
retrofits to replace failed wind turbines from other references. I would advise MNOs and towercos to
suppliers. The original towers and wiring is often only work with companies with five years or more
reusable. history thats the best due diligence.
Lots of new entrants have come and gone in the Bergey Windpower have the longest and most
small wind power business many became highly successful track record, the highest reliability and
leveraged, manufactured products that were not most robust designs. We welcome comparisons

FACT: Orange Telkom Kenya
wind solar hybrid sites achieved
90.5% diesel opex savings
Add wind power to your solar-diesel off- grid sites

to reduce OPEX and increase reliability.
Bergey is the worlds leading supplier of wind

turbines to the telco industry.
Bergey Windpower
Norman, OK USA
sales@bergey.com
www.bergey.com
From power to active
TowerXchange: Please introduce Ballard, its key
activities and footprint with regards to Latin
infrasharing; opportunities for

America
Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales CALA Region,
LatAm towercos to look beyond Ballard Power Systems: Ballard is a global company
offering fuel cell technology solutions to a variety
passive infrastructure of industries. Fuel cells are a clean source of energy

and to date, we have shipped around 150 MW of
hydrogen fuel cells worldwide and thousands of
Fuel cells are the optimal energy back-up power solution for rooftops and critical
systems designed specifically for outdoor telecom
sites but towercos are yet to get involved sites.
Pedro Yarahuan joined Ballard Power Systems almost two years

The Latin American market is one of our fastest
ago, after more than six years of experience with other fuel
growing regions. In 2013, we counted twelve
cell manufacturers and twenty years at Ericsson. His wealth of
commercial deployments and to date, the count
knowledge goes beyond fuel cells and their applications, and spans
has increased to fourteen. Our customers are all
into the key dynamics of the telecom tower industry in the CALA
major regional carriers including Amrica Mvil,
region. In this exclusive interview, he shares his views on Ballards
Telefonica, Digicel and LIME as well as TSTT in
offerings, challenges and opportunities of urban and rural sites in
Trinidad and Tobago and Bahamas BTC. We have
Latin America, and some interesting insights as to opportunities
two new deployments in the pipeline which will
beyond passive infrastructure for carriers and towercos.
bring our project count to sixteen over the course of
Keywords: Ballard Power Systems, Latin America, Caribbean, 2014.
Amrica Mvil, Telefonica, Digicel, LIME, TSTT, BTC, Trinidad and
Tobago, Bahamas, Interview, Energy, Passive Equipment, Rooftops, We address the backup power needs for the global,
South America, Central America, Urban vs Rural, Infrastructure and specifically Latin American, telecom markets
Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales
Sharing, Fuel Security, TCO, Pass-Through, Densification, Active
and focus our attention on outdoor sites with power
CALA Region, Ballard Power Systems Infrasharing, Off-Grid, Fuel Cell, Hydrogen, NOC, RMS
demands up to 5kW DC.
Read this article to learn: The ideal sites for Ballard solutions are in urban
< Ballard Power Systems offering and footprint in Latin America environments, where regulation forbids the use of
< How fuel cells can provide an ideal solution for rooftops diesel generators; or areas with a high degree of
< Fuel cell applications in off-grid, remote telecom sites theft and security problems which result in diesel
< Why tower companies in LatAm arent getting involved in the power game generators being stolen, and rooftops.

TowerXchange: Latin America is experiencing
a high growth in demand for rooftops. How is
Ballards offering suitable for rooftops?

Ballard Power Systems: Fuel cells are an ideal
solution for carriers and tower companies
looking at setting up cell sites on rooftops as they
allow them to overcome the problems caused by
traditional diesel generators.
In fact, landlords usually dont allow the use of

diesel generators on rooftops and, if they do, theyd
demand that the carrier provide power for the
entire building rather than for the cell site alone.
This means that the carrier is forced not only to
equip the rooftop with a very large diesel generator
but its also deemed responsible by the landlord in
case of its failure.
Hydrogen fuel cells eliminate this problem from the

root.
TowerXchange: What are the advantages of

hydrogen fuel cells from an environmental Courtesy of Ballard Power Systems
perspective? And from a technical and economic preparation and spill containment procedures. extremely powerful. Systems are built from
standpoint? the ground up, considering SMNP protocol
Fuel cells are a silent, light solution. Our generators requirements, which virtually interfaces with every
Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales CALA Region, weight less than 300kg and are relatively small NOC centre available in the market. Practically, this
Ballard Power Systems: The environmental compared to traditional DG. Moreover, they means that the technician does not need to go to the
advantages are a key component of our offering. dont require connectivity to the AC panel as they site to perform advanced troubleshooting, verify
In fact, the fuel used in our systems, also called consume a small amount of DC power (250W) in its status and, if needed, connect with the factory
hydroplus, is 100% bio-degradable and spill control standby. and with the main office to solve any problem
requirements are very light given its properties. straight away thanks to the availability of local
This results in considerable savings in terms of site The Ballard remote monitoring capabilities are trained technicians and a tiered support system

back to the experts at Ballard. The result is very low It is also pertinent to mention that carriers struggle

incidences of downtime and much faster response to make good RoI when providing coverage to
times supporting end users of the technology. This remote, off-grid areas. The site revenue just does
is a very big differentiator of our technology against not justify high OPEX solutions. At the same time,
anything else in the market. carriers struggle with investing on expensive CAPEX
solutions, as it would take decades in recuperating
Someone might object that our products arent investment. Thats the challenge of off-grid sites. I
the most economical. But we are confident that Imagine a site in Kingston, am referring to very small villages in very remote
the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of our fuel cells Jamaica or in Nassau, Bahamas. locations throughout the CALA region where
clearly shows the economic advantages of using communities are likely to share few phones, mostly
In these areas, a call from a
this technology. These economic facts are publicly with pre-paid plans and maybe single digit internet
available on our website. tourist can cost up to US$ 5 per connections. The business case to reach these areas
minute and the local carrier needs to consider government investment to help
Featuring fuel autonomies of 40 hrs and above,
thanks to the systems ability for truly dynamic
power delivery, coupled with very low cost of
preventive maintenance by only having to clean
or replace two air filters every year (or every
simply cannot afford a low
quality service
carriers justify CAPEX or OPEX investments and
we foresee that such availability of funds will take
some time to develop.
On the other side and to date, the opportunity in

500hours) and refuelling as needed, make this Latin America is now well beyond coverage and
solution a great choice for telecom carriers. is focused heavily on differentiation of services
in urban areas and multiple services with the
TowerXchange: Which regions and specific same access to the subscriber. People want more
areas demand fuel cells rather than traditional TowerXchange: How does the business case offerings, products and competitive bundles and
generators? for fuel cells at off-grid sites stack up in Latin this is what carriers are paying close attention
America and the Caribbean? to. Remote areas will take some time to become a
Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales CALA Region, priority.
Ballard Power Systems: Ballard fuel cells are the Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales CALA Region,
perfect answer for high-end residential areas, and Ballard Power Systems: In remote, off-grid areas TowerXchange: Is security a major problem in
busy commercial settings equipped with rooftops. Ballard fuel cells need to be part of a more complete Latin America? If so, which areas are posing the
balance of plant involving alternative generation, hardest challenges?
Imagine a site in Kingston, Jamaica or in Nassau, battery banks and controllers . We will be happy to
Bahamas. In these areas, a call from a tourist can cooperate with carriers and site owners looking at Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales CALA Region,
cost up to US$ 5 per minute and the local carrier providing coverage in remote areas as our fuel cells Ballard Power Systems: From a security standpoint,
simply cannot afford a low quality service. This is are an ideal complement for these types of solutions some areas of Latin America pose hard challenges
where our solutions come handy. going forth. to overcome.

In fact, theft of diesel, copper and equipment is
a reality especially in areas affected by natural
disasters and endemic poverty. Moreover, remote
areas present additional technical challenges that
require expertise beyond imagination. When a
company is required to install a system on top of a
high mountain or near a volcano, the team involved
in the project doesnt only have to be technically
equipped but able to sustain physical challenges,
modify site environmental conditions, etc.
With specific attention to theft, security is an issue

not only in remote areas but can affect urban
sites as well. We are aware of sites placed in key
metropolitan locations where generators are locked
in cages and patrolled 24/7.

Courtesy of Ballard Power Systems
TowerXchange: Are you currently working with Therefore, and due to the aforementioned potential
tower companies as well as carriers? fines, tower companies are reluctant to get involved
in selling energy to carriers as an additional service
The key opportunity for the Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales CALA Region, as they would then be responsible for continued
tower industry to serve carriers Ballard Power Systems: To date, we havent started power service, which in the event of a power
with power solutions is finding working with tower companies but we are very failure, could result in carriers directly passing
a solution to the severe fines

imposed on carriers by the LatAm
governments for shortcomings in

site availability and/or quality of
service
eager to discuss our solutions to them.
The key opportunity for the tower industry to serve

carriers with power solutions is finding a solution to
the severe fines imposed on carriers by the LatAm
governments for shortcomings in site availability
through penalties issued by the government to the
tower company.
We believe that tower companies could add value

to the industry by offering extra services such as
power, but the trend of towercos owning sites is
and/or quality of service. Energy provision to the a relatively new dynamic in the region and the
site can stop functioning not only due to lack of balance is still being defined.
maintenance but in case of natural disasters as well
as theft. In light of this, many co-located sites have one

generator per tenant which is far from being a cost at cost-effective options to rollout 4G LTE but its

effective solution. In order for things to change, definitely a threat for tower companies as it reduces
the tower proprietors need to open a channel of the number of potential tenants they can attract to
conversation with local regulators to eliminating their sites.
or amending the penalty system. If governments
decide to eliminate fines, tower companies could Interestingly, while some carriers havent shown
add lot of value to the telecom industry, beyond Tower companies could create strong interest in Latin America to share its passive
passive infrastructure. productive sites just like or active infrastructure, they also own MVNOs in
the U.S., One example is TracFone, owned by one
other carriers do these days.
TowerXchange: Whats your view on why important LatAm regional group, where the carrier
Amrica Mvil have been more reluctant to sell
In some instances, telecom is heavily involved in buying capacity rather than
their towers than other LatAm carriers? sites are conceptualised as towers in North America. TracFone is a very agile
telecom oasis... These sites
Ballard Power Systems: There are carriers that see
their passive infrastructure as strategic, amongst
them, Amrica Mvil. Some carriers define sites
as productive as they generate revenue for the
arent just telecom hubs but
fully operational commercial
centres that generate revenue
company able to offer cost effective plans and
devices to its subscribers, and the company doesnt
need telecom towers.
An interesting trend along those lines is the Multi-

Play strategy which is now gaining popularity in the
company by generating excess electricity at some Caribbean.
of its sites and sell it back to the National utility
company. On these sites, the carrier installs a system called
DLC (Digital Loop Carrier), which can provide TV
Telecom sites are normally placed in the best traffic restaurants, etc. These sites arent just telecom services, landline, mobile, hotspots and security
locations throughout the region and this is the key hubs but fully operational commercial centres services via a single access point to the subscriber.
reason for some carriers to not wanting to sell nor that generate revenue for carriers and its affiliated This means that whoever owns the best real
share their sites. One of the few exceptions is in commercial partners. estate to locate a DLC access point will be able to
high end beach resorts where, due to regulatory offer multiple services to its customers, hence an
limitations, carriers need to share towers. TowerXchange: How do you see carriers important revenue generator to the carrier
strategies evolving in the 4G era?
Tower companies could create productive sites I think tower companies should take a closer look at
just like other carriers do these days. In some Pedro Yarahuan, Director of Sales CALA Region, this trend as they could potentially get involved too.
instances, telecom sites are conceptualised as Ballard Power Systems: I believe that regional In order to function, the site of a Multi-Play system
telecom oasis because all the equipment can be carriers are looking beyond passive infrastructure needs to be within a mile of the subscriber, which
hidden in sculptures and site can host a variety sharing and more closely at active infrasharing. implies a need for cell site densification in the areas
of services such as stores, hotspots, coffee shops, This is a very interesting option for carriers looking where its offered

How hybrid energy
TowerXchange: Thanks for speaking to us
today. Please tell us where Power-One fit in the
telecoms infrastructure ecosystem.
solutions can reduce or Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One: When
eliminate diesel consumption towercos acquire assets from MNOs, their first
priority is to reduce opex. Furthermore, MNOs are
seeking to reduce opex, so they can extend services
Retrofitting cell sites with solar hybrid solutions to slash opex to low population density, low ARPU, increasingly
remote areas.
Power-One designs and manufactures energy-efficient power
conversion and power management solutions for renewable
With the continually increased cost of delivered
energy, and is one of Africas leading hybrid commodity diesel, problems with fuel theft and the watering
suppliers. Power-One supplies through strategic partners to down of diesel, cell sites currently running diesel
help MNOs and towercos reduce genset usage to 10-20% of gensets 24/7 have an incentive to retrofit with
current levels. TowerXchange spoke to Power-Ones Product hybrid energy solutions. Hybrid energy allows
Marketing Manager, Kai Hennum, about the companys the tower operator to switch off the genset, cycle
footprint in Africa and beyond. the batteries, and reduce or even eliminate diesel
consumption, slashing fuel costs and maintenance
Keywords: Hybrid Energy, Opex Reduction, DG Runtime, opex.
Rectifiers, Batteries, Maintenance, Renewables, Solar,
Wind, Fuel Cells, Retrofit, Greenfield, Capex, RoI, Outdoor Power-One designs and produces rectifiers,
Equipment, Infrastructure Sharing, Africa, Nigeria, Power- controllers, inverters, converters and power system
One, Mexico, Central America, Latin America, Caribbean, solutions around these. In the hybrid market, we
South East Asia, Indonesia, India are purely a commodity supplier and dont have the
Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One
infrastructure or inclination to take on end-to-end
projects and turnkey management. So our strategic
Read this article to learn: partners combine our products with batteries, RMS
< How hybrid energy power solutions can reduce or even eliminate diesel consumption and subcontractor services.
< How to evaluate a sites suitability for solar hybrid energy
< A comparison of solar, wind and fuel cell energy solutions for telecoms Personally, I am responsible for the network power
< The capex required to retrofit a cell site with hybrid energy systems globally which includes our hybrid offering.
< Specializing in energy equipment design and manufacture vs diversifying into turnkey For hybrid systems, the majority of deployments
service provision have, of course, been in Africa, and for our standard
products we have a presence in the rest of EMEA

and APAC as well as North and Central America,
so we see South America as a major potential
growth market for us, particularly for hybrid power
systems.
TowerXchange: Where have Power-Ones

solutions been installed in Africa?
Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One: Power-

One had the first CDC trial system installed in
Africa around 2007 and has since been developing
a standard system portfolio for CDC and Solar. The
promotion and trialing of hybrid solutions during
the last six to seven years since has mainly been
with African MNOs and towercos through regional
partners. We used to joke that there seemed to be
more trial hybrid cell sites in use in Nigeria than
non-trial sites! Tower operators are increasingly
convinced that hybrid is the right technology choice
to reduce energy opex.
Power-One works with integrator partners to supply Hybrid System - Courtesy of PowerOne
some of the main towercos in Africa for countries we call them unofficial local taxes, while some TowerXchange: What information does the tower
like Uganda, Tanzania and DRC. More recently, roads are impassable for six months a year during operator need to evaluate a location for solar?
we have provided the equipment for hybrid solar the rainy season. So these kinds of smaller, more
sites in Nigeria and for pure solar as well which difficult to access sites are ideal for solar hybrid. Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One:
is an interesting development. We are gaining Obviously, the most important evaluation is to
information that will serve to improve performance Our models show that a lot of regions of Africa establish that the site has exposure to the sun.
and we are experiencing an increase in demand for are generally suitable for solar, then we can use For Africa, the conditions for solar are good but
pure solar. simulation and RoI tools to evaluate which is the on a local level there could be shading and other
best solution for each specific site location. With conditions that come into play which can have
Power-One solar and genset hybrid solutions many years of experience in Africa under our belts, considerable effects on the solar contribution and
have been rolled out in the Niger Delta, helping to Latin America will be an excellent opportunity for hence the RoI.
eliminate fuel requirements at a lot of sites. Diesel us to share our extensive knowledge base with the
deliveries in this area had been subject to shall regional partners there. Also, there is the practical aspect of having the

space available for the panels. In some RFQs, panels are cheaper than wind turbines. Solar panel reliability. Fuel cells work best with 95%+ mains
we have seen that several football fields of solar costs have come down substantially over the last availability, and might perhaps be viable in certain
panelswould be needed to cover the load and two to three years. Wind hybrid solutions suffer in parts of North Africa and South Africa.
battery autonomy requirements, so often we had comparison because wind turbine manufacture is
to bring the expectations/specifications down not as commoditised as solar. This makes it difficult Even in Europe, the fuel cell powered sites Ive seen
to a realistic level after our internal review and to offer a relatively cost competitive wind power feature large separate rooms for hydrogen storage.
simulations. solution. It seems like every wind power site needs Replacing diesel with hydrogen also doesnt take
Furthermore, the battery autonomy requirements to be customised which, together with the capital away the fuel logistics costs.
can represent practical limitations, particularly for cost of the equipment, limits market acceptance of
pure solar since a lot of solar power is needed when wind power to date. And on a basic level, sunshine We have yet to do detailed analysis for the South
it is the only energy source and batteries need to be is more predictable than wind! American continent but the assumption is that the
recharged regularly. demand split between CDC, Solar hybrid, Wind and
The GSMA Green Power stats show that most green other will be more or less in line with what we
In the early days, we spent a lot of time calculating cell sites are generator optimised, with the second have seen in Africa and other regions, with CDC and
RoI, HOMER modeling, etc in order to find the most being solar hybrids, and a distant third group Solar representing more than 90% of the overall
optimised system setup for specific sites. Nowadays, of wind plus solar plus CDC sites, most of which are demand.
and particularly for the towerco business this is still in trials.
either part of the scope for the towerco itself or TowerXchange: What typical capex outlay is
for the integrators/turnkey supplier while our Another challenge is that wind turbines seldom required to retrofit a site with hybrid energy,
involvement is to configure our standard products go to a specification low enough for a 1.5-2kW and how does that compare to greenfield sites?
accordingly. The knowledge base has changed cell site. Generally, there isnt a huge amount of
completely during the last three to four years; wind in Sub-Saharan Africa, a few coastal areas Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One:
typically when a request for a hybrid system comes notwithstanding. Retrofitting a site is more complex as there is often
to us the customers nowadays usually know what an incentive to use what is already there, which
they want. We do have extensive simulation tools The fuel cell solutions Ive seen in India where again leads to more ad hoc power solutions for each
enabling us to model hybrid system performance theyve deployed two meter high cabinets full of site. More commonly though, the old power system
to a high degree of accuracy and advise what the twenty hydrogen cylinders to give maybe 72 hours is shut down and the site is re-wired to the new
performance of a system solution will be. of standby time on a cell site are not feasible for use hybrid equipment which is often a low footprint
in Africa and other locations. 72 hours is not a lot outdoor enclosure. Tower operators will often ask
TowerXchange: How do the different renewable when were trying to reduce generator runtime by the contractor to take old rectifiers back to their
energy sources for cell sites compare? 75% or more. warehouse for use on legacy sites. So end to end
turnkey retrofits are often more expensive than
Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One: We Fuel cells might work at sites with permanent gas greenfield installations.
have experience with wind and fuel cells. The supplies. Its certainly a green method, but it only
obvious reason solar is more appealing is that solar really works at sites with high grid availability and At greenfield sites were seeing a focus on ease of

deployment and installation with less concrete modular approach, this allows adding on solar
civil works buildings, and more use of outdoor capacity along the way in order to further reduce
equipment compact, cabinetised, and fitting in the genset duty cycle and opex.
smaller areas or with containerised solutions.
For solar, it is very common to house the power TowerXchange: Finally, can you sum up how
equipment in a small enclosure that is placed under Power-One differentiate yourselves from your
the panels. Retrofitting is not as cost competitors?
effective as building in the
As for the capital outlay, this of course depends on Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One: As
capacity from the outset as it
variables such as solar power percentage etc. At
a 1.5-3kW site youre probably looking at US$15-
20,000 or upwards inclusive of new equipment,
shipment, installation, and removal of old
equipment. Based on a cost per delivered liter of
diesel of US$1.50, youre looking at RoI in around 12
it is also a more labor intensive
installation and hence more
prone to mistakes

requires a return visit to the site,
a commodity supplier with more than twenty
years of experience in the telecom power systems
industry, we have combined our experience with
knowledge from our renewable energy activities
and believe that we have developed a portfolio
of hybrid power systems tailored particularly for
months. telecom applications that very few vendors are able
to match. In particular, we have invested a lot of
Costs are going to vary for demographic reasons time and resource on understanding the battery
and other factors, for example a lot of the logistical technology that is typically deployed for off grid and
costs are higher in Nigeria whether its something as tenancies are added. Retrofitting is not as cost hybrid solutions and have implemented complex
as simple as hotels being expensive or something effective as building in the capacity from the outset algorithms to ensure optimised battery lifetime.
as fundamental as the road network being under- as it requires a return visit to the site, it is also a
developed but again such variables are typically more labor intensive installation and hence more We then tie up with strategic partners as we dont
evaluated in a lot of details by the towercos prone to mistakes. want to be a turnkey supplier. Other equipment
themselves. manufacturers are trying to get into the service
We recommend that more power shelves are space, where the value of deals is certainly
TowerXchange: Given that towercos seldom included for additional converters, and expand bigger. Power-One just supplies equipment, and
upgrade capacity before additional tenancies are with additional modules only as they go along. will sign non-circumvention agreements. A big
sold, how do you support the modular approach However, for towercos keeping a tight reign on turnkey project can take a month to put together,
towercos take to power systems? capex investments until tenancies are secured, its in which time we can supply equipment to five
often the preferred solution to deploy with a cost or six strategic partners we have the capacity to
Kai Hennum, Product Manager, Power-One: optimised system setup. For the same reasons, work on a greater number and variety of different
Fundamentally, our system solution caters for CDC is often deployed to achieve immediate opex projects. So our partners today know we wont
either considering future load/tenant increase at reductions with a minimal capex investment with be in competition with them for service contracts
the time of deployment, or to add this on in the field solar being added later on, similarly with our tomorrow

How to make
TowerXchange: Please introduce our readers to
TSi Power.
more grid power usable Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation:
We design and manufacture telecom power
protection, conversion and backup products for
TSi Powers power protection, conversion and UPS solutions proven at use by telecom operators around the world. Our
thousands of emerging market cell sites primary products are Outdoor XUPS, Outdoor DC
UPS, VRP and VRX, an outdoor version of the VRP.
Nam Paik has been with TSi Power for 25 years. During
this time, he has seen the business switch from a focus TSi Power initially concentrated on indoor UPS.
on indoor UPS to robust outdoor UPS with a wide- However, in 1998, our new owner Peter Nystrom
input range capable of maximising use of grid power moved TSi Power in the opposite direction from
in challenging emerging market situations. In this where the big companies were going. We began
interview, Nam explains how to overcome common concentrating on outdoor systems with a wide input
challenges such as voltage variances, rolling blackouts range and focused on an anywhere in the world
design philosophy.
and lightning strikes, using examples from TSi Powers
work with clients such as MTN and Zain.
With our larger competitors focusing on easier
to solve power problems, 98% of TSi Powers
Keywords: Whos Who, Energy, Opex Reduction, business comes from rugged, all-weather outdoor
Batteries, Outdoor Equipment, Uptime, Unreliable Grid, solutions. We develop power solutions for remote
cell sites accessible only by 4WD vehicles and where
Line Conditioning, ROI, Solar, DG Runtime, DAS, UPS,
extra-large fuel tanks are necessary to maximise
AVR, Rectifiers, Africa, Southern Asia, Mexico, India,
autonomy. I like to think of TSi Power as an all
Pakistan, Uganda, Cote dIvoire, MTN, Zain, TSi Power
Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power terrain vehicle, whereas our competitors are luxury
sedans designed for driving down the freeway!
Read this article to learn: TowerXchange: How can operators and tower
< How AVR (automatic voltage regulation) protects against voltage variances, increasing the companies protect their sites against downtime
number of hours of mains power you can use due to rolling blackouts?
< How to protect your cell sites against rolling blackouts
< How to protect against lightning strikes Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation:
< Comparing the energy requirements of DAS and shared macro sites For telecom sites without backup generators,
telecom service outages can occur when the site

loses utility power or when the battery backup particularly in countries like Nigeria. Sensitive,
time is insufficient to ride through a six-hour power expensive telecom equipment typically has a +/-
outage. Such outages are common in emerging 20% tolerance, but voltage varies +/- 30%. So you
markets, where a lack of generation capacity results need AVR (automatic voltage regulation), surge
in daily power cuts of several hours as utilities protection and backup generators in case of mains
resort to rolling blackouts to spread the power The voltage of the AC mains is interruption.
shortage evenly among all customers. subject to variances, particularly
High quality, telecom-grade AVR such as TSi Powers
in countries like Nigeria. Sensitive,
When telecom-grade battery backup units, such as VRP or VRX will extend the useful voltage range to
Outdoor XUPS or Outdoor DC UPS with over eight
expensive telecom equipment plus or minus 30%, or 160-320v, which should be
hours of battery capacity are used to prevent service typically has a +/- 20% tolerance, sufficient to cover the variances in Nigeria. Below
downtime, it results in opex minimisation and
increases customer satisfaction, rather than risking
customer complaints and defections to competitors.
TowerXchange: Why is surge protection so

but voltage varies +/- 30%. So
you need AVR (automatic voltage
regulation), surge protection and
backup generators in case of
mains interruption
160v, electricity is useless and dangerous motors
will jam, so power companies usually cut the power
below 160v. Similarly over 280v they should cut the
power off, but thats not always the case in Africa,
where the culture is typically well give you any
important at emerging market cell sites? power we can generate! This means it is critical for
cell site owners to buy their own protection system,
Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation: including cut off switches and voltage regulators.
Due to lack of budgets and resources on the part
of utilities, there is very little utility-provided Having the widest input voltage regulator is key. For
surge protection against lightning strikes or other The correct implementation of surge protective example, this contributed to MTN Ugandas success
transient events on an AC power line, resulting in devices will minimise telecom equipment damage and market leadership. MTN were proactive in
frequent and catastrophic equipment damage when and resulting telecom service outages. anticipating problems, and addressed the need for
lightning strikes overhead transmission lines or voltage regulation ahead of their competitors. While
nearby structures. TowerXchange: TowerXchange attended a recent MTN invested in TSi Powers premium solution,
GSMA GPM Working Group in Nigeria, where we some of their competitors deployed cheaper
The result can be telecom service outages of heard complaints that at unreliable grid sites solutions with a narrower input range. Uptime was
several hours while damaged equipment is being with six hours per day of grid, only 60% of that affected, QoS and reputation suffered, so MTNs
repaired (or several days if lightning damaged power could be used. How much grid power can market leadership increased.
equipment cannot be repaired in the field and must be rendered usable through line conditioning
be replaced). This can be very costly to telecom and voltage regulation? TowerXchange: One of the first questions our
operators both in terms of equipment repair/ readers ask is how proven is the solution in
replacement costs and customer defections to Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation: emerging markets? So tell us how your solutions
competing carriers. The voltage of the AC mains is subject to variances, are used in Uganda.

Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation:
MTN Uganda started using TSi Powers VRE-3000 AC Mains Input Voltage Windows
units early in 1998 when the rectifiers powering
their first 50 cellular base stations failed frequently.
This was because the nominal 230 vac mains voltage 315 V
in Uganda can vary from 160 vac during peak
Shut down and/or damage to equipment
working hours to 300 vac in the middle of the night.
264 V
By 2003, several hundred VRE-3000 units were Borderline operation (over-voltage)

being used to protect all of MTN Ugandas BTS 250 V
equipment against unstable mains AC voltages. Safe Area of Operation
In early 2004, VRP-3000/5500 replaced the VRE-
210 V
3000/5000 the VRP series precision PWM voltage
regulators provided an even higher level of Derating and increased heat (brownout)
performance and reliability by providing a cycle-by- 184 V
cycle correction of output voltage and 230 vac +/-3% Severe derating, shut down and/or damage to equipment
voltage.
150 V
MTN Uganda has purchased several hundred VRP-

5500 units since 2004, including 170 more VRP units TowerXchange: I believe TSi Power solutions are TSi Power won two large contracts from MTN Cote
for installation at 170 new locations built during also in use in Nigeria, Ghana, Cote dIvore, Congo dIvore for over 600 Outdoor VRP-ILC -15000-5339
2010. They report having even better performance and Zambia units for their network expansion project in 2007
and reliability results. There were about 1,000 TSi and 2008.
Powers AVR units operating in Uganda by the end Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation:
of 2010. In 2004, TSi Power won a large contract from We have also installed CRE-3000 units at 30 sites for
V-Mobile in Nigeria (now Airtel Nigeria) to supply a satellite communications company in Congo, as
Uganda Telecom and Celtel Uganda (now Zain about 300 sets of VRP-ILC. From 2004 to 2007, well as at 50 regional satellite communication sites
Uganda) have also used many of TSi Powers Celtel Nigeria and other Nigerian mobile phone in Zambia where the UPS systems kept shutting
products. companies purchased and installed about 1,000 down due to unstable mains AC voltages. After five
VRP-ILC units in Nigeria. years, all 50 SLC units are still operating flawlessly.
UltraTec in Uganda has been TSi Powers partner in We also have equipment installed in India, Pakistan
Uganda since, taking care of MTN Uganda and all In late 2008, Zain Ghana purchased more than and Mexico.
other customers in Uganda with logistical services, 100 Outdoor VRP-ILC -15000- 5339 units for their
warranty repair and out-of-warranty repair service network upgrade and expansion program in early TowerXchange: What should be the priorities
work. 2009. when optimising the energy efficiency of

emerging market cell sites? you can make your sites look boring to protect from a larger 120 vac (or 230 vac) powered DAS base
vandalism and theft! station shared by three or four operators might be
Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation: powered by our Outdoor XUPS-1500-7070.
Minimise power consumption with low energy Selecting an energy storage solution like Durathon,
equipment and create economies of scale by with a 15-year lifetime even under challenging In comparison, a typical macro-site requires
deploying uniform AVR and UPS solutions. conditions with daily charge and discharge, is worth 5-10kW for the three to four transmitters needed
the capital outlay proactive thinking is required to for a site shared by three to four carriers. When
The first step is to replace any transmitters that succeed in this business! air conditioners and other ancillary devices are
are more than five to six years old. While old included, peak power consumption can be 15-20kW
transmitters might require 5000w for a single signal, TowerXchange: What are the design elements for each macro cell site.
new energy efficient transmitters might use 3000w that contribute to maximising robustness and
to carry signals from three or four carriers, using temperature resilience in outdoor systems? Typically, three-phase AC service is used (either
less kWh to produce three to four times the revenue 120/208V or 230/400V three phase) for most macro
from a shared site. Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation: cell sites, with a 15-22.5 kwatt, three phase AVR.
Conventional power conversion systems are Theyll also use traditional telco rectifiers, with a
Air conditioning is a particularly inefficient use of designed for benign indoor environments only three phase input with 4 x 3kW rectifier modules
energy, so consider installing air-cooled transmitters and are not suitable for use in outdoor conditions, for N+1 redundancy, 54 vdc output and a two-hour
that dont need an air conditioned container. where they will quickly fail. Unlike indoor power battery bank, just for the transmitters.
conversion systems, outdoor systems must be
Install an AVR like ours to maximise use of grid specifically designed and manufactured for the Most macro cell sites are backed up by a diesel
power while unreliable, mains is typically the challenging outdoor conditions. It is crucial that generator for power outages with a duration beyond
cheapest power available. Ten-year-old AVRs will inclement weather, contaminants, corrosive the typical two hours of battery backup time.
frequently break down, so invest in new solutions to substances, moisture, vibration and other hazards
maintain the 99.9% uptime that customers expect, are not able to damage the system. TowerXchange: What kind of ROI can TSi Powers
otherwise you risk creating a risk of single point of solutions deliver?
failure at a shared site that can interrupt multiple TowerXchange: How do UPS requirements differ
operators revenue. between DAS and macro cell sites? Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation:
Let me give you one example from MTN Uganda.
I would recommend installing slightly oversized Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation:
rectifiers to charge 12 hours of battery power. With A typical DAS base station requires about 200-300 From 1999 to 2005, during their six years of network
such a solution, if power is only available half the watts per transmitter, up to a maximum power build-out period, MTN Uganda purchased about 150-
time, you can run on your fully charged batteries consumption of 1,200 watts with four different 200 VRP-5000 units per year to protect all of their
for the other half of the time. This system reduces transmitters for four carriers. Therefore, a small new BTS sites.
DG runtime and cuts fuel consumption by 90-95%. DAS base station can be powered and protected by a
I would also recommend installing solar panels if solution like our Outdoor DC UPS-250-7070, whereas At US$1,500 per unit, capex investment was US$200-

in solving poor grid power quality in advance engineering, assembly, testing and circuit board
and spending 2% more capex during their during production, which allows us to develop and produce
network expansion phase, MTN Uganda avoided the needed technologies while minimising reliance
being penny-wise and pound-foolish and avoided on outside suppliers. However, we also maintain
fighting fires later with scarce opex budgets. excellent relationships with key suppliers of major
Being proactive in solving poor components, so they become intimately aware of our
grid power quality in advance ROI was at least 50 times the investment! needs, as well as the needs of our customers. This
and spending 2% more capex results in improved efficiencies and quality over
TowerXchange: How would you sum up the time new systems can be quickly developed and
during their during network
difference between TSi Powers premium
expansion phase, MTN Uganda
avoided being penny-wise and
pound-foolish and avoided
fighting fires later with scarce
opex budgets
solutions and lower cost alternatives?
Nam Paik, Director of Sales, TSi Power Corporation:

Telecom-grade solutions like TSi Powers UPS and
VRP solutions might cost twice as much as out-of-
existing systems can be quickly modified to meet
customer requirements.
TSi Powers workforce is highly skilled and has

a very low turnover rate. This ensures that the
specialised, detailed knowledge required for
the-box, one size fits all solutions, but TSi Powers designing and producing outdoor systems is
solutions have been proven to last ten+ years, continuous and eliminates the need to constantly
delivering 10-20 times better ROI than low-cost instruct and train new workers.
equivalents.
300k per year, protecting tens of millions of dollars Many outdoor applications are highly individualised
in annual network expansion capex. All of the over TSi Power performs a thorough evaluation of the which warrant very small production runs
1,000 VRP units are still in service at MTN Uganda in customers objectives, operating conditions and sometimes only a single unit along with fast
2014. technical requirements for the telecom power turnaround times. TSi Power specialises in low-
protection and backup products we propose, volume production runs with the ability to custom
By 2005, MTN Uganda had over 1,000 BTS sites in ensuring that we provide the correct system-level design and manufacture products with short lead
operation throughout Uganda and captured 85% solution rather than the our box is 20% cheaper times.
market share in mobile communication business in approach used by vast majority of our competitors.
Uganda. In fact, around 2005 MTN displaced Coca Finally, TSi Power designs its own power conversion
Cola as most favorite brand which Coca Cola held To protect expensive telecoms equipment from systems to very rigid specifications and very broad
for decades. failure and to guard against churn and liabilities component tolerances, thereby reducing the risk of
from accidents brought on by application failure, failure and increasing the range of environments
I dont think it is possible to achieve such it is crucial to work with an proven, innovative in which the systems can be used. The systems are
domination of the market unless MTNs network outdoor power system supplier, such as TSi Power. specifically ruggedised with heavier components
reliability and uptime is over 99.9% (or less than a and proprietary coatings to eliminate the danger
few hours of down-time per year). Being proactive TSi Powers manufacturing facility includes in-house from moisture, salt and other contaminants

Imergys unique leasing option TowerXchange: Please introduce Imergy
Power Systems and your role in the telecoms
infrastructure ecosystem.
opens volume market for vanadium Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy
redox energy storage technology Power Systems: Imergy manufactures a range of

vanadium redox energy storage solutions, and has
been operational since 2006. Originally operating
Energy storage innovation attracting interest from operators, towercos and ESCOs as Deeya Energy, who built an impressive base
of technology and clients in India, we changed
TowerXchange caught up with Tom Tipple, one of the evangelists of
vanadium redox energy storage technology, as he settled into a new
our name at the end of 2013, coinciding with
role as Regional VP for Europe, Africa and the Middle East at Imergy the introduction of new investment and a new
Power Systems. Vanadium redox batteries are known to be a good fit management team.
for emerging market telecoms, in that they have a ten+ year lifespan
and can partially charge or discharge an unlimited number of times Our new management team comes with
according to the availability of grid or renewable power sources impressive credentials; Bill Watkins is an award-
without any degradation in performance. However, the capital cost winning CEO who previously headed up Bridgelux
of vanadium redox technology has been prohibitively expensive for and Seagate Technology, and Tim Hennessy was
many applications until now! President of Prudent Energy and CEO of VRB
Power Systems Inc. which commercialised the
Keywords: Whos Who, Energy Storage, Opex Reduction, Batteries, VRB technology.
Air Conditioning, Off-Grid, Unreliable Grid, ROI, Vanadium Redox,
ESCOs, Hybrid Power, DG Runtime, Africa, Asia, Middle East,
Imergy Power Systems Imergy is the first company to take flow battery
Tom Tipple, Imergy Power Systems
technology to the next stage driving down costs
while maintaining high quality. Our innovative
Read this article to learn: approach to manufacturing and financing takes
< How a fast charge profile and the flexibility of partial charge and discharge states offer the most cost us into the specialist area of serious volumes,
efficient performance delivering batteries not in the usual orders of tens,
< Why Imergys vanadium redox batteries come with a standard five year warranty, while lead-acid but in orders of thousands of units.
batteries often need replacing in 18-24 months with an unenforceable warrantee
< How to scale energy storage solutions as you move from 2.5kW to 10+kW peak load TowerXchange: The first thing our readers
< Leveraging manufacturing innovations to drive volume usually want to know is how proven is the
< How Imergys electrolyte lease model reduces upfront capex by 50%, making vanadium redox solution in the field, so please tell us about
your experiences at cell sites in India, Africa
competitive with lead-acid batteries
and Indonesia over the last two years.

Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy
Power Systems: The predecessor to Imergy, Deeya
Energy, focused on the Indian market, where their
manufacturing base was located, and where they
have over 75 systems installed over five years with
virtually no failures. Clients include Airtel and
American Tower, and were about to sign a 200
system order with a big Indian telecoms operator
in the next month. We continue to see significant
market demand for our products.
With the new investment and new management

team, Imergy is now more of an international
Clients include Airtel and

American Tower, and were
about to sign a 200 system
order with a large Indian
telecoms operator in the
next month. We continue
to see significant market
demand for our products
company, seeking opportunities in Africa, the
Middle East and Asia (for example Myanmar and
Indonesia) one of my objectives is to broaden our
Imergys new ESP5 5 kW rated system
Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy Power

Systems: Were talking to most of the African
towercos and several MNOs, and have three pilots
international horizons. scheduled from June one in the West, one in the
East and another in Southern Africa. We currently
TowerXchange: What has been the interest in have an active trial in Nigeria with our smaller
your solutions from Africa? 2.5kW system, which is great for single tenant

the customer specifies up front that he requires
5 kW, 30 kWh stack charge-dischage characteristics a modular solution, which means we add an
additional slot for an additional stack, it adds a
small 5-10% cost to be upgradeable from a 2.5kW to
a 5kW stack. We can also increase energy capacity
simply by adding more electrolyte.
TowerXchange: For readers unfamiliar with

vanadium redox technology, please explain why
it is so well suited to energy storage at emerging
market cell sites.

Systems: The whole idea of using vanadium redox
is to maximise energy saving we capture power
from the grid, from diesel generators and from any
renewable power sources as quickly as possible
through the batteries fast charge capability. Our
batteries are used in diesel hybrid solutions or as
backup power for weak grid sites where outages
remote sites, but not ideal for multi-tenant towers. Well be introducing our new ESP5 system in occur on a daily basis.
The new ESP5 system addresses that higher power August, which is a nominally rated 5kW system
requirement. (at its most efficient), but able to output at a But the unique thing about Vanadium Redox
continuous 7kW. So we can now address small, batteries is that they can cycle an unlimited
TowerXchange: What is the sweet spot for the remote installations with our 2.5kW system, number of times, using the full charge capacity,
load your systems are able to support? And how right up to larger multi-tenant sites with our 5kW whereas other energy storage technologies such as
are solutions scalable as single tenant towers system. Once you get to loads above 8kW, you lead-acid are handicapped by a finite lifecycle, and
become multi-tenant sites? simply add a second system. For data centres you need to follow strict guidelines to maximise
and other larger installations, we have a 30kW / that lifecycle. You have to make many compromises
Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy Power 120kWh energy storage system available in October with lead acid battery solutions to maximise the
Systems: From an applications point of view, we and a new 250kW modular solution due in 2015, life expectancy. Physics tells you that lead acid
are an ideal storage technology for microgrid, off for large solar farms, grid stabilisation and load is simply not the right technology for long term
grid and weak grid solutions, with or without PV shifting. cycling or for partially charged requirements.
installation. Cheap in the short term, but with poor
In terms of modularity and scalability, as long as performance and needing constant replacement.

no-one really has that depth of record keeping.
Very few companies have managed to get their
money back or replacements covered under the
warranty on a lead acid battery; its elusive.
TowerXchange: Whats the timeline to ROI in

Imergys vanadium redox batteries?

Systems: Due to the straight line / fast charge
capability, the ESP5 can deliver a much higher run
time saving than other battery technologies, so
we offer better opex savings on fuel. On a typical
off grid site, the ROI is well under two years. The
TCO figures over three years and beyond are
better than other storage technologies as there is
no replacement cost. For most equipment buyers,
achieving an ROI under over three years is critical,
while ESCOs looking at seven years power provision
contracts find the vanadium redox system a very
compelling proposition.
Vanadium redox batteries will last at least ten years Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy TowerXchange: What is unique about Imergy
and this life expectancy is totally independent of Power Systems: We offer a five year warranty as Power Systems ESP installations chemistry and
the number of cycles. With vanadium redox you standard; we dont have any warranty limitations manufacturing process?
can stop and start charging and discharging at any on temperature, number of cycles and depth of
state of charge with no effect on the performance discharge, and well sell an extended ten year Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy
or life expectancy of the battery. Thats absolutely warrantee at very low additional cost. Power Systems: Thanks to the unique chemistry
critical for sites on weak grids where you dont of the electrolyte, our vanadium redox batteries
know when the power will come back on. In comparison, lead acid battery warranties have a high temperature rating up to 50 degrees,
have guidelines covering temperature, depth of which means in most locations you dont have to
TowerXchange: The warranties on the batteries discharge and charge profile management. In order worry about cooling. Other competitive energy
used on cell sites are notoriously difficult to to claim a replacement battery under warranty, you storage solutions have much lower temperature
claim against whats unique about Imergys need comprehensive records to prove you kept to restrictions, meaning they need some sort of
solution in that respect? the manufacturers recommended guidelines, and cooling, which adds a parasitic load.

The cell stack is the brain of the system; it converts controllers and electronics. By retaining ownership
electrochemical energy into electricity. With most of the electrolyte, and leasing it over a five year
flow batteries, the membrane component of the cell period, we can bring down the capex element
stack has been inherently expensive to produce. by 50% making it comparable to a lead-acid
However, Imergy have a unique cell stack design solution. This model is particularly attractive to
that reduces our manufacturing cost enormously the growing numbers of ESCOs as they can afford
while maintaining efficiency. to take advantage of advanced storage solutions,
By retaining ownership of
generating better savings with much more of a
the electrolyte, and leasing
We have also outsourced manufacturing to
Flextronics who are a highly reputable contract
manufacturer. They bring volume production
capability at low cost without compromising on
quality.
levelised cash outlay.
How can we do this? The electrolyte simply does

not change over time it has retained, re-usable
value. Were happy to take the electrolyte back if
the customer ever moves to a new energy storage
it over a five year period,
we can bring down upfront
capex by 50%

TowerXchange: Even if your energy storage system. All the other energy storage systems are
solutions can deliver twice the opex savings entirely disposable a large proportion of our
compared with lead-acid batteries, how do system is entirely re-usable.
you overcome the difference in initial capital
outlay? TowerXchange: What does it cost? electrolyte all the customer has to do is deliver it
to a port of convenience to collect. Or he can opt for
Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy Tom Tipple, Regional Vice President, Imergy Power an extended five year warranty at minimal cost.
Power Systems: Up to now the business case for Systems: The outright capital purchase price for a
vanadium redox has always suffered because of a 5kW / 30kWh system (equivalent to a 48VDC 1,200 We have designed the system to be a simple
higher up front capital cost compared to lead-acid; Ah lead acid battery solution operating at 50% DoD) replacement into most existing sites. The ESP5
however the new ESP5 offers energy capacity at is around US$22,000 in volume, and includes a five includes its own battery hybrid controller to
just over $700 / kWh which represents a real price year warranty. manage the generator run time according to
breakthrough for small systems. This is a complete the charge capacity plus a remote monitoring
system price including a built in generator Ordering the same system under our split capex- system measuring performance that can either be
controller, remote monitoring system and housing opex model reduces the upfront capex to around independent or ported to a third party RMS. The
not just the battery part. US$11,000, equivalent to a good quality lead acid only additional equipment you need a charging
system. Over a two year period, the monthly lease device onsite, and we can usually work with
We are also able to offer a split capex-opex for the electrolyte works out at around half the existing equipment on site. The cost of a complete
financing model which reduces the upfront cost of replacing the lead acid batteries. At the ESP5 system with its enhanced OPEX saving
capital outlay. We lease the electrolyte separately end of the five year lease, if a new energy storage performance now makes Vanadium Redox flow
from the capex items such as cell stacks, housing innovation becomes available, we take back the battery technology a very attractive proposition

Batteries represent 40-50% of
TowerXchange: Please introduce your company,
offering and geographical footprint
site capex: are you choosing the Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company:
Trojan Battery Company has more than 85 years of
right ones? expertise in manufacturing high quality, long life

deep-cycle flooded, AGM and gel batteries to serve
the renewable energy and telecom industries.
Quality, suitability and testing are key factors to maximise ROI and uptime Founded in 1925, Trojan provides deep-cycle
when selecting a battery vendor batteries for BTS sites which operate on unreliable
grids or completely off-grid, use PV solar arrays,
Trojan Battery Company was founded in 1925 and is one of the or other renewable energy systems, and/or hybrid/
worlds leading manufacturers of deep-cycle batteries. In this charge discharge cycling (CDC) solutions.
exclusive interview, we discussed with one of the companys
directors, Chris Bieck, the key drivers behind the adoption of Trojan has four manufacturing plants in the
deep-cycle batteries in the telecommunications industry, the main U.S. and operates warehouses in Germany and
differences between premium deep-cycle batteries and stand-by Singapore that enable us to swiftly respond to
batteries and how the telecom industry perceives and distinguishes our customers needs around the world. We are
between these two different battery solutions. currently planning to set up a facility in Africa to
serve the growing demand from the continent for
Keywords: Trojan Battery Company, Interview, Energy, South premium cycling batteries. Trojan manufactures
America, Central America, South East Asia, Africa, Batteries, all of its batteries in the U.S. to ensure that its rigid
Batteries, Fuel Security, Uptime, Off-Grid, Unreliable Grid, Hybrid quality standards are met.
Power, TCO, Renewables, PV Solar, American Tower, Claro,
Digicel, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Nicaragua, System Integrator, Trojan manufactures deep-cycle batteries which
Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, meet the requirements of mobile network
Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Mali, Niger, Botswana operators and towercos for premium quality
Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company
deep-cycle batteries to provide DC power to sites
on unreliable grids or off grid. Trojan specializes
Read this article to learn: in serving carriers and towercos serving rural
< Why opt for deep-cycle batteries at off-grid and unreliable grid sites communities in emerging markets.
< Which markets are adopting premium battery solutions
< Engineering challenges related to PV solar and diesel sites Trojans global reach allows it to work with key
< What customers need to know before picking the right batteries players in the industry which includes telecom
vendors, power systems integrators, OEMs, MNOs

and towercos.
TowerXchange: Tell us about the business case

for renewable energy at distributed cell sites.
Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company:

Our products suit the needs of unreliable and off-
grid sites, and sites running on PV solar or hybrid
applications.
The most common solutions today in the

market that are designed to reduce diesel fuel
consumption are hybrid or charge discharge cycle
(CDC) systems. The most common hybrid or CDC
solutions use a combination of diesel generators
(DG) and deep-cycle batteries to power the load at
the BTS site. Other hybrid solutions incoprorate a
DG, batteries as well as PV solar and perhaps wind.
Indian site using Trojan Battery products

The main objective of a hybrid solution is to
reduce the consumption of diesel fuel and the array is critical for the stable and predictable While some sites are near a grid, they are not
runtime of the disel generator. Diesel fuel is often operation of the hybrid/CDC system, as well as connected because of the difficult and slow
times the single largest OPEX cost to the MNO for the MNO or towerco to reach its TCO goal of process, as well as the high cost of obtaining
and towerco today and increasingly the most reducing its OPEX and dependence on fossil fuels. permits to connect to the grid. For these sites,
important area where costs can be reduced at a diesel used to be the obvious alternative. Today,
site especially as diesel fuel prices rise globally and More complex solutions include another power solutions combine different sources of energy and
diesel subsidies are phased out in many countries. source such as a PV solar array. This not only batteries allowing companies to rely less and less
reduces the cost related to running the site but on diesel and more on batteries and alternative
The main tool managing the multiple power inputs contributes considerably to minimise the sites sources of energy.
in a hybrid system is a power controller. The carbon footprint.
controller monitors and manages the power status TowerXchange: Talk to us about the cycle life of
of the site, provides automated onsite management Sites running on hybrid or renewable applications Trojans batteries
of the DG, and manage the state of charge (SOC) of are built with an emphasis on reducing fuel
the battery array which are the main components consumption. Diesel is a problem due to its cost, Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company:
of hybrid system. A reliable deep cycle battery environmental consequences and loss due to theft. Trojan Battery only produces premium grade

lead acid deep-cycle batteries. The charge/ costs they did not anticipate shortly after installing different batteries it is considering for PV solar
discharge cycle or cycle life of a Trojan battery, or a new solution in their network. Therefore, we and hybrid installations and determine if the
any lead acid battery, depends on many factors. always recommend that customers ensure that batteries they are being sold are truly deep cycle
These include the routine used to charge the they pick a product which has been tested to and their true cycle life verses the published cycle
batteries, whether or not the batteries are taken independent international recognized standards life the vendor claims.
to a full state of charge (SOC) on a regular or daily by an accredited testing laboratory and not trust
basis, the temperature at which the batteries are the battery vendors published specifications The IEC 61427 standard subjects the battery to
stored, and the depth of discharge at which the in their sales and marketing literature for a partial state of charge (PSOC) cycles in which
batteries are cycled. If they are flooded batteries, particular battery which more often than not is the batteries are discharged before they reach
the user needs to stick to a regular maintenance misleading. a full state of charge. This is a very common
routine, topping them off with distilled water. occurrence in hybrid and renewable energy
The MNO and towerco should seek independent systems. This requirement significantly reinforces
The duration of Trojan batteries also depends on and highly qualified confirmation of the true the applicability of the IEC 61427 standard for
the overall engineering of the site. Companies performance of a battery before making a choice. batteries in hybrid and PV systems.
which work with Trojan on these installations
offer many different solutions in which the Trojan Battery tests all of its batteries to the IEC Trojan suggests that the MNO or towerco insist
amount of time the battery is expected to power 61427 standard. This is a a globally recognized that each battery vendor provide them with the
the load varies from 4 hours to several days. indendepent standard which best emulates the results of their battery tested to the IEC 61427
conditions a lead acid battery will experience in standard by an independent globally recognized
On average batteries represent between 30% to a hybrid or PV solar solution. Most importantly and accredited testing company. If the vendor
40% of the total CAPEX of a site running a hybrid it gives the MNO and towerco an independent claims to provide a deep-cycle battery for PV
or renewable energy solution. It can be more standard by which it can benchmark one battery solar applications, then it should have tested its
depending on how long the site must be able to vendors cycle life claims against another vendors batteries to this standard.
operate autonomosly and how long it takes to cycle life claims.
charge the batteries correctly to perform up to By insisting that all of its battery vendors test
their best potential. The cost for battereis can run The IEC 61427 standard subjects the battery to to the IEC 61427 standard, MNOs and towercos
as high as 60% of the total systems cost. a set of operating conditions that more closely will not have to rely on the published cycle
resemble what it will actually face in the real specifications the vendor provides in its marketing
One of our key challenges is educating Trojan world, with the results providing the closest and sales literature or trust the internal tests of the
customers to understand that cheap battery estimate of the batterys service life in an PV or vendor which in most cases are desgined to put
solutions seldom pay off in the medium to long hyrbid application in the field. their battery in the best light possible. Insisting
term. Many systems fail because they work with that all its batteries vendors provide the final IEC
stand-by batteries that die just a few months after The IEC 61427 test guarantees that each battery is 61427 test results of a battery which have been
installation. This is a very expensive lesson for tested in exactly the same way. This test provides performed by a qualified independent laboratory
the customer as they then have to incur CAPEX companies a tool to compare and contrast will help you quickly make an apples to apples

comparison between different battery vendors. Latin America is a smaller market in light of its making it harder for potential thieves to access
fairly good power infrastructure, however, we them.
TowerXchange: Where do you get most demand still work with companies such as Claro to provide
from the telecom sector for your batteries, solutions in countries that need alternative power TowerXchange: Talk to us about the role of
LatAm, Africa, Asia or elsewhere? And what solutions such as Peru. We are particularly Trojan Batterys agent network in ensuring
proportion of your business comes from active in the Caribbean and Central America in replacement batteries are available just in time.
towercos compared to MNOs? such markets as the Dominican Republic, Haiti,
Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company:
Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company: We have a network of distributors in over 120
Trojan Battery is most active in South East Asia Today approximately 80% of our business comes countries and, thanks to our existing and planned
in countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, from towercos and 20% from MNOs. warehouses, we are able to serve our clients
Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines, as well as quickly worldwide as we often have a stock of our
in Africa and Latin America. TowerXchange: Some cell site operators report batteries in-country or in-region. Our distributors
that battery theft is almost as acute a problem stock our products and can meet the demand
Additionally, we serve the Indian subcontinent as diesel theft. What can be done to reduce the virtually at anytime, anywhere.
which is a very price sensitive market and yet, stealability of cell site batteries?
one where we are experiencing great success. We TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up how
have recently won a contract after a two-year trial Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company: you would differentiate Trojan Batteries from
with American Tower Corporation (AMT) to supply This is an issue for all lead acid battery vendors as competitive cell site energy storage solutions.
battery systems for a hybrid application which people steal batteries to either recycle the lead that
also incoporates PV solar using our deep-cycle they contain, or use them in common consumer Chris Bieck, Director, Trojan Battery Company:
Premium line of flooded batteries. In this specific applications such as cars or to run household Trojan Battery has been around for almost 90
case, AMT realised that the TCO dramatically products. years and this is definitely a winning factor when
improved when using flooded batteries. While proving our credibility. We have a long history
flooded batteries require a bit of maintenance, Possible solutions would be to either avoid and reputation for manufacturing high quality
they offer a longer lasting and more cost-effective using 2V and 12V batteries which are suitable cyclic batteries. Our investment in advanced R&D
solution. The maintenance of the batteries is for a variety of commercial and consumer facilities and quality control processes ensures that
automated by using a Trojan self watering kit, applications and use different voltage batteries our deep-cycle batteries meet the requirements of
which will considerably reduce the OPEX of such as a 8V AGM battery which Trojan will the industries in which we operate.
maintaining the site. release shortly. Batteries also can be buried in
underground storage cases. Because of our first rate manufacturing facilities
In Africa, we are working mainly in sub-Saharan in the U.S. and independent third-party testing,
countries such as Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, In order to reduce the problem, we are currently we can guarantee the quality of our products and
Tanzania, Mali, Niger and Botswana. designing a passive and active cooling cabinet and have a very low failure rate over the course of our
rack system for our batteries which can be locked, history

Special feature:
Beyond passive
infrastructure,
part three
With around 2,000 new DAS being rolled out
every year in the US, what is the opportunity
in emerging markets? TowerXchange takes a
look at opportunities in DAS for towercos in
general, and in LatAm in particular, with the
help of multi-band, multi-tenant DAS network
implementation specialists Deltanode.
TowerXchange also chats with Thomas Bell

of Anritsu to learn about the rusty bolt
effect, or Passive Intermodulation, where
damaged or corroded components generate
interference and compromise performance.
Passive intermodulation testing is particularly
important for LTE deployments, as performance
is dependent on the signal to noise ratio.

214 Deltanode: The LatAm telecom industry
gears up for a new wave of DAS
217 Anritsu on the rusty bolt effect

The LatAm telecom industry
TowerXchange: Please tell us about Deltanode,
its activities and footprint
gears up for a new wave of DAS Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: Deltanode is a
relatively young company founded in 2005 with
Densification and a maturing telecom industry are driving the change the aim to offer enhanced solutions for the wireless
communication industry. Since 2008, we have been
Distributed Antenna System (DAS) networks have been focusing our attention on the implementation of
deployed extensively in North America to offer coverage in Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) networks.
targeted locations and to provide additional data-handling
capacity in high-traffic areas. With the advent of 4G LTE To date, the majority of our business comes from
and an impressive growth in subscriptions, Latin America the United States and Canada where we have more
is the perfect target for Deltanode, a Swedish based than 2,000 units in operation. The North American
company focused on DAS networks and mobile coverage DAS market is constantly growing and is the
solutions. traditional home of DAS, in fact our largest client is
a North American Neutral Host.
In this exclusive interview, Henrik Huss, CEO of Deltanode,
shares his insights into the future of DAS in Latin America Lately, we have captured some interesting business
and which challenges and opportunities lie ahead for opportunities in Scandinavia, our home market.
telecom companies. Quite a few DAS opportunities are related to large
infrastructure projects like tunnels and bridges,
which require public safety networks to be
Keywords: Deltanode, Interview, North America,
combined with commercial coverage, all co-located
Central America, South America, Brazil, Canada,
in the same DAS infrastructure. For the past five
United States, Co-locations, DAS, Infrastructure
years we have been active in Mexico and two years
Sharing, Multi-band, Densification, Scandinavia, Fibre,
ago, we decided to actively pursue opportunities in
LTE, 4G, Regulations, FCC, Licenses
Latin America.
Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode
Right now, we are looking at expanding our

Read this article to learn: operations into Brazil and some Spanish speaking
< The expansion of DAS in North and Latin America countries in the CALA region.
< What drives the development of DAS in emerging markets
< Deltanodes specialised offering of high power outdoor DAS TowerXchange: Please tell us about the role that
< How to overcome the lack of fibre when rolling out DAS DAS and other smaller cells play in network
planning, particularly in emerging markets

Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: With the expansion Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: Historically, tower
of mobile connectivity, DAS is becoming the option companies have strong cash-flow and this is a
of choice to provide multi-operator, multi-band major driver that pushes them in favour of DAS. As
systems in large, public venues such as stadiums previously mentioned, it is fairly normal for them
and shopping malls. to look at DAS after they have developed their tower
strategy.
DAS is the ideal solution to offer a common
platform to several carriers to expand their network However, without MNOs driving the demand, the
outreach beyond towers. business case for DAS isnt there. When an operator
decides to extend its signal beyond towers, then
In the U.S., DAS is a secondary and yet fundamental towercos know the time is right to invest in DAS
business development opportunity for tower rollout.
companies.
TowerXchange: What is the expected market size
Brazil, thanks to the upcoming World Cup and in Latin America?
Olympics, is driving the change in terms of DAS
and gearing up to ensure connectivity is offered in Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: It is tricky to assess
stadiums, highways, airports etc cetera. the market size of Latin America but looking at the
U.S., the average is in the area of 2,000 new DAS
TowerXchange: What is the tipping point that nodes per year. And this refers only to neutral host,
will persuade a tower company or a carrier to go high power outdoor DAS rollouts. In addition to this
from thinking about DAS to then implementing there is a very large in-building market.
DAS?

We expect LatAm to become a relatively big market
for us, somewhat aligned to the US.
In the U.S., DAS is a secondary

and yet fundamental business
development opportunity for
tower companies
TowerXchange: How do you compare the
procurement requirements between carriers
and towercos? Are they seeking fundamentally
different solutions, for example for single versus
multiple tenants?
Courtesy of Deltanode
focus on the existing regulation - FCCs in the US for

example - and then, there is a considerable amount
of homologation and internal approvals for each
specific client.
Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: There are two sets In terms of solutions, Id say that the single-
of requirements that we have to deal with, when signal solutions are mostly required by MNOs
developing a project. On one hand, we need to whereas towercos prefer to install multi-band and

rise buildings, we can use existing fibre to the
buildings where we look at installing our systems,
it is normally possible to deploy new fibre at
reasonable cost as the distances are relatively short.
There is of course some issues with permits in those
cases.
In the US, fibre is more common but in Latin

America the problem can be easily solved.
Additionally, most of the buildings we target do
I believe that the time is right
for DAS in Latin America

have fibre inside as they tend to be new builds.
TowerXchange: What is the average project

length, from day zero to completion?
And if companies are looking at complex projects,
Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: A project would Deltanode has the right set of tools.
normally take anything between twelve and
eighteen months and this includes all the permits We provide a very modular system, highly flexible
and documentation phases. and adaptable, which is a key component when
making a business decision on a DAS project. In
With regards to Latin America, the regulatory fact, the life of a DAS is approximately fifteen years,
process is more complicated. However, we know and clients are likely to make changes to the system
that some countries are now adjusting their telecom over the course of its lifecycle. Whether they look
Indoor building system using Deltanode in downtown Toronto
regulations this is a welcome change for our at adding frequency band or upgrading to LTE, our
multi-tenant DAS. We specialise in the latter as industry as we hope the licensing process will be system is easily adjustable thanks to its modularity.
our products have great performance and high streamlined.
reliability and are suitable for complex projects. To date, we havent experienced any reliability issue
TowerXchange: Finally, please sum up the and thanks to our open source coding, there arent
TowerXchange: What are the implications for value proposition for carriers and towercos in any license fees required. Our clients install the
backhaul for DAS in light of fibre not being emerging markets to invest in DAS and what equipment and most operations are web-based.
widely implemented in emerging markets? differentiates Deltanode from other potential
partners in DAS? We offer a highly reliable product and, thanks to
Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: DAS works over our large installed base and track record, we are
relatively short distances. Therefore, if we consider Henrik Huss, CEO, Deltanode: First of all, I believe confident we can be a partner of choice in Latin
a downtown or sub-urban environment, with high that the time is right for DAS in Latin America. America as we are in North America

The rusty bolt effect: why
TowerXchange: Thomas, nice to meet you at
MWC! Please introduce yourself to our readers
Passive Intermodulation testing Thomas Bell, Senior Product Manager, Anritsu:

I have been involved in base station antenna
is becoming globally relevant manufacturing since 1995 and with Passive

Intermodulation testing since 1997. At that
time, we were working with this test from the
4G LTE is driving the change in terms of testing requirements
manufacturing side and since 2009, I have
Anritsu was founded in 1895 in Japan under the name of been active in the field to help transition this
Sekisan-sha and then established as Anritsu Electric Corporation knowledge to the practical field side.
in 1931. With approximately 4,000 employees in twenty
countries and sales volume surpassing 94,000 million yen, Currently, Anritsu is selling the PIM Master in
Anritsu is now a global company offering a wide array of cutting Latin America, Africa, Europe and South East
edge products and services in the R&D, manufacturing, sales and Asia along with North America and we have been
maintenance of testing and measurement instruments for the globally successful.
telecom industry.
TowerXchange: Please tell us about your
We had the pleasure to meet and speak with Thomas Bell, Senior products and their evolution in the past few
Product Manager for Anritsu, at the Mobile World Congress this years
year and get a snapshot of how network evolution is changing
the way carriers need to test their equipment. Thomas Bell, Senior Product Manager, Anritsu:
At Anritsu, we have been selling the Site Master
Keywords: Anritsu, 4G, LTE, North America, Latin America, Africa, for years now as a tool to verify installation
South East Asia, Central America, Interview, Core Network, Passive
Equipment, Active Equipment, Installation, Testing, Passive quality. It does so by measuring reflections in the
Intermodulation testing, Measurement, Network Rollout, Thomas RF path. Eliminating reflections caused by kinked
Thomas Bell, Senior Product Manager, Anritsu Bell, Mobile World Congress
cables or poorly made RF connections improves
transmission efficiency, allowing more energy to
Read this article to learn: make it through the antenna feed system and into
< Anritsus testing and measurement offering and its increasing importance in light of 4G LTE the sector.
network rollouts
< Why carriers should invest in extra testing when deploying 4G LTE Today, we are also concerned about noise or
< How a loose connection can slow your network from 20Mb to a few Mb per second interference generated by the transmitted signals
as they pass through the RF infrastructure. Self

interference known as Passive Intermodulation, Intermodulation testing is not new and has been

or PIM, can be generated by very simple things a requirement for component manufacturers
such loose RF connectors or corroded parts. This since 1997. Now we have portable test
has been known in the industry for a long time as instruments capable of making this measurement
the rusty bolt effect. If components are somehow in the field. This allows carriers to measure the
damaged or if RF connectors arent properly passive intermodulation of the assembled RF
tightened, this can jeopardise performance. path, to make sure it is good enough to support
LTE.
Companies dont want
The Site Master is a great tool for identifying
reflections, but a different test instrument is Operators typically start off by purchase a few to invest billions to
then realise that a loose
required to identify PIM. The PIM Master was
developed to perform this test and identify the
location of components that need repair.
TowerXchange: Why is the Site Master not

enough anymore?
sets of PIM test equipment for their technicians
to help de-bug PIM problems in the field. Within
a few months, they usually determine that they
are fixing problems on brand new installations.
Soon after that, PIM testing usually becomes a site
acceptance test for all new installations.
connection is slowing down
the speed rate, right?

Thomas Bell, Senior Product Manager, Anritsu: There is a lot more awareness now in the
LTE deployments are the main driver for PIM industry regarding the impact of PIM on LTE
testing. The performance you get from an LTE network performance. Operators now often plan
system is dependent on the signal to noise ratio. for PIM testing as part of their LTE deployment which is highly susceptible to PIM interference
The stronger the signal is compared to the noise, strategy and include funds to cover the testing in and carriers have to be extra conscious regarding
the faster the data can be transmitted. their capital budgets. their data rates due to competition. To date, the
PIM Master is a standard test for the majority of
PIM that falls in an operators uplink band acts TowerXchange: In which markets is the PIM carriers in North America.
as interference and increases the noise floor. Master in demand?
Carriers can set up a state of the art LTE network However, carriers worldwide need to realise
but if they dont tighten and clean every RF Thomas Bell, Senior Product Manager, Anritsu: that VSWR testing doesnt exclude Passive
connection the whole system can run at a few MB North America has been the market with the Intermodulation and viceversa. Any system
per second instead of 20MB per second. largest demand for Passive Intermodulation planned for LTE should be tested both ways to
Testing in light of the advanced status of 4G LTE ensure coverage, signal strength and the desired
PIM testing is a necessary investment deployments and the availability of portable PIM speeds are achieved. Companies dont want
for operators that want to get maximum test solutions since 2009. In North America, the to invest billions to then realise that a loose
performance from their LTE network. Passive LTE networks have been deployed at 700MHz, connection is slowing down the data rate, right?

Tower Xchange
Meetup Africa 2014

October 20-21, Johannesburg
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Q4, Bangkok or Bali
Meetup Americas 2015

28-30 April, Hollywood, FL
Tower Xchange
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Tower Xchange LatAm - lets meetup!

Join 200 decision makers, representing 42 towercos and

TowerXchange Americas: TowerXchange Africa: TowerXchange Asia:

Plus TowerXchanges analysis of American Towers International strategy Tower Xchange

TowerXchange is your independent

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47 LatAm: Brazil, Chile and

9 News: deals, launches and licenses

144 RMS and site management

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American Towers International

portfolio AMT currently owns over 39,000 sites outside its

United States 27,739 Mexico 8,369 Germany 2,031

International tenancy ratios

AMT believes that the lower current average

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Source: American Tower 2013 International Analyst Day Presentation

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I am in Myanmar and we have all been

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Meetup Americas 2014

Register online at http://www.towerxchange.com/apply-to-attend. Questions? Call Annabelle on +44 7423 512588

Association Media Partners:

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200 Director, VP and C-level Decision makers broken down

Investors and Investment Management Advisors

Lawyers and Strategic Consultants

Energy Equipment Providers

OEMs & Managed Service Providers

Static Assets, Access Control & Monitoring and Management

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of the year and exhibit in the TowerXchange Latin American

327 426 427 526 527 626

Food & Drinks Foo

Fidelity Henkles &

104 505 Industries 704 705

102 103 Solutions Phillips

Small Cell Pavillion

Reduce opex we will only accept replacement registrants of equal or

Invest in network Outsource

TowerXchange serves the Latin American tower

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Acsys is a global leader in tower access control

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Mer Group Telecom Division

Mer Group Telecom Division provides end-to-end Wireless

www.gemalto.com www.connectm.com www.mer-group.com/solutions/wireless-infrastructure

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AIO Systems HMS Industrial Networks Invendis

www.aiosystems.com www.hms.se www.invendis.com