Ardian Infrastructure buys rural operator Adamo for $1.1 bn

Private equity fund EQT has agreed to sell Spanish telecom provider Adamo to France’s Ardian Infrastructure for an enterprise value of $1.16 billion.
Barcelona-based Adamo provides landline, broadband and mobile services to around 250,000 subscribers with a focus on customers in rural areas, while its fibre network reaches around 1.8 million homes across Spain.

Rival telecoms operator Telefonica is also considering selling a stake in its Spanish fibre network, which could be valued at $17.37 billion. Grid operator Red Electrica also plans to sell part of its own network, Reuters reported.

The rural fibre market has shown growth, with newcomers such as Avatel – which became Spain’s sixth fibre operator after buying 110 local fibre providers between 2020 and 2021 – mulling up to 400 more acquisitions.