According to Spanish newspaper Expansión, the transaction is being led by BNP Paribas, Santander and financial adviser Scotiabank, and is pending regulatory approval by competition authorities, due to complete in the first half of 2023.
The network Entel sold covers 1.2 million sites – comprised of both residential and commercial locations - in Chile and under the terms of the deal, Entel has entered a long-term contract to use OnNet Fibra’s new network, which with the addition of the infrastructure acquired from Entel will now bring its coverage to 3.9 million sites. OnNet Fibra is still on track to reach 4.3 million homes by 2024.
"By selling our network, rather than leaving the fixed market, we are increasing coverage rapidly to offer our internet services to the home at efficient costs and without the need to invest the sums required for a fibre deployment with this coverage," said Entel in a statement seen by Reuters.
OnNet Fibra was formed through a collaboration between Telefónica and KKR in 2021 when Telefónica create an independent subsidiary where it transferred its fibre optic network it had in the Andean country, comprised of two million real estate units. 60% of the capital for the business was provided by KKR in a transaction that valued OnNet Fibre at $1 billion.
