Melody Investment Advisors, an asset manager focused on communications infrastructure, yesterday announced the acquisition of 90 percent of Uniti Towers, the wireless tower business of real estate investment trust Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ: UNIT). The purchase totals approximately $220 million in cash and includes over 500 towers based in the U.S. Melody Investment Advisors will fund the purchase from Melody Communications Infrastructure Fund II.
Through an investment in an affiliate of Melody, Uniti will retain a 10 percent investment interest in the tower business and will receive an incremental earnout from Melody for each additional pipeline tower completed in 2020. In addition, as part of the transaction, Melody and Uniti will enter into a strategic relationship to collaborate on integrated solutions for wireless carriers requiring towers, fiber and small cell infrastructure. The transaction is subject to various closing conditions and is expected to close by the end of second quarter 2020.
With the addition of Uniti’s towers, Melody and its affiliates now own and market more than 4,000 towers, ground leases and structure and rooftop leases, including pipeline sites. Melody and its affiliates are a top five independent owner of national wireless infrastructure assets and claim to be one of the largest privately owned telecom landowners in the U.S.
“As the transition to 5G continues, communications infrastructure is one of the fastest growing, most stable and critical segments of the economy. We are excited about the addition of these towers to our expanding portfolio and the benefits they will bring both to our carrier partners and to our investors,” said Omar Jaffrey, Managing Partner and Founder of Melody Investment Advisors. “We look forward to working with Uniti as we continue to grow and invest in our wireless infrastructure platform while seeking further growth through acquisitions.”
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