Investment giant KKR announced a partnership with Associated Partners to invest a reported $100 million into the wireless infrastructure space through PEG Bandwidth, AP Wireless and AP Towers. Those firms are managed by Associated Partners, which has an investment focus in the wireless space.
Reports indicated that the investment will hit $100 million through minority investments in the three firms, which is but a small portion of KKR’s more than $90 billion in managed assets.
PEG Bandwidth designs, builds and operates Ethernet backhaul networks connecting wireless communications towers to the data fiber backbone, principally in rural geographies. The company, which received $15 million in equity financing from Associated Partners in 2010, earlier this year closed on the acquisition of Contact Network’s broadband operations that operated under the InLine brand in parts of Mississippi and Alabama. The network includes a fiber-optic network covering 1,100 route miles in those states, providing broadband services to enterprises, municipalities and the consumer segment.
AP Wireless acquires interests in cell site ground and rooftop leases in the United States and internationally, while AP Towers develops and purchases wireless telecom towers.
“The need for wireless infrastructure will continue to be driven by increases in wireless data usage that is overwhelming existing network capacity,” said Raj Agrawal, KKR’s head of North American infrastructure. “We are excited about the opportunity to partner with Associated Partners to grow this premier set of businesses with critical telecom infrastructure assets.”
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