Brookfield InvIT expects data to drive revenue

Trust seeks unitholders nod to change name to Data Infrastructure Trust

Tower Infrastructure Trust, an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) owned by Canadian financial powerhouse, Brookfield, is planning to change its name to Data Infrastructure Trust so as to increase the future business possibilities of the Trust.

The InvIT said the Trust would have a broader scope under the name “Data” which would be more reflective of the overall business profile of the Trust assets in the future, it said in a filing with the stock exchanges.

At the same time, the InvIT which owns 100 per cent equity in Summit Digital Infrastructure Private Limited (SDIPL) formerly known as Reliance Jio Infratel Private Limited, will be converted from a private company to a public limited company.

In December 2019, in order to reduce debt in its books, RIL’s subsidiary, Reliance Industrial Investments and Holdings Ltd (RIIHL) had inked binding agreements with Brookfield to sell 100 per cent stake in its telecom tower company for Rs 25,215 crore. As per the deal, RIIHL, the sponsor of Tower Infrastructure Trust, had issued units in the trust to Brookfield affiliate, BIF IV Jarvis India and some investors.

After the deal was closed, Brookfield became sponsors of the trust, which, in turn, held 100 per cent stake in the telecom company with 1,30,000 towers across India. RIIHL became the co-sponsor, but did not hold any units. This was the single largest foreign investment in an Indian infrastructure vehicle —just prior to the Corona pandemic hit India.

RJIL, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Limited, is the anchor tenant for all towers owned by SDIPL which has presence in 22 telecom circles. SDIPL has geographically well-distributed portfolio of towers with 22%-28% located in each geography. The company intends to increase its portfolio to 174,451 towers and more than 60% of the towers are fiberised ensuring higher capacity for increased data consumption at higher speeds.