KUALA LUMPUR: edotco Group, a unit of Axiata Group Bhd , has announced the acquisition of about 1,000 towers from XL Axiata in a deal valued at about 750 billion rupiah (RM219mil) through its subsidiary PT edotco Infrastruktur Indonesia.

       As part of the transaction, edotco said in a statement yesterday that it will acquire 859 towers through a sale and leaseback arrangement.

       It will also enter into a managed service agreement for an additional 162 sites with a significant build-to-suit potential with XL Axiata.

       Following the transaction, edotco will enjoy a truly pan-Indonesian platform with a presence across all the major islands of Java, Sumatra, Bali, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Eastern Indonesia.

       In the same statement, edotco chief executive officer Adlan Tajudin said the group had been intensifying its efforts to enter Indonesia since mid-2021.

       “The acquisition will accelerate our strategy towards becoming a top-five Global TowerCo and help us gain a strong foothold in one of Asia’s most-sought-after tower and telecom markets.

       “Our ambition is to grow aggressively, both organic and inorganic, to scale up our operations and become one of the market leaders in Indonesia,” he said.

       Following this transaction, edotco will have a presence in nine markets across Asia, with a portfolio of over 50,000 owned and managed towers under its operations.