The telecom tower provider said 5G will require the deployment of advanced radios and antennas across carrier macro footprints
U.S. telecom tower provider SBA Communications continues to see 5G-oriented activity on macro sites outside of urban areas, the company’s president and CEO Jeffrey Stoops said during a conference call with investors.
“We continue to see this activity and are excited about what 5G ultimately will mean for SBA. Mobile 5G will require the deployment of advanced radios and antennas across carrier macro footprints,” Stoop said. “With only a small fraction of this deployment happening over the last several quarters, the vast majority of the opportunity is still in front of us,” he added.
The executive highlighted that much of these 5G deployments will require the use of new antennas, which are bigger than typical antennas taking up incremental capacity at traditional tower sites and driving incremental revenue opportunities for the industry. “We also expect to see additional benefits from the deployment of 5G and higher bands, particularly CBRS and C bands.”
“Upcoming spectrum options, the DISH deployment, the potential resolution of the Ligado spectrum and other items with all help keep the U.S. market a very interesting and active place for the foreseeable future,” he added.
“During the second quarter, we continued to invest in expanding our tower portfolio, deploying incremental capital into both new tower builds and acquisitions. During the second quarter, we acquired 224 communication sites for $152.3 million, with most of those sites located in the U.S. We also built 87 sites during the second quarter,” said the company’s SVP and CFO Brendan Cavanagh.
“Each of our major U.S. customers remained active, investing in their networks, and we expect to continue to see a healthy level of new lease and amendment signings throughout the balance of the year,” Cavanagh said.
Commenting on the announced T-Mobile-Sprint merger, Stoops said the company has not seen any impact to organic leasing activity as a result of the operation. “Our interactions with both companies continue to be business as usual,” the executive said.
