By Rogerio Jelmayer
SAO PAULO--The board of Brazil's TIM Participacoes SA
(TIMP3.BR), the local unit of Telecom Italia SpA (TIT.MI),
authorized the company to evaluate the sale of the company's
telecommunications towers, as an effort to create value for its
assets and to improve the company's efficiency.
The company is authorized to evaluate proposals for the
acquisition of its towers; however, it did not reveal how many
towers it may sell, or the finances involved.
Other Brazilian phone companies made similar steps recently,
acknowledging that the management of towers was not part of their
core business. Many have used the money to reduce their debts and
to go ahead with investment plans.
Last year, for example, telecommunications firm Oi SA (OIBR,
OIBR4.BR) leased 2,113 telecom towers to SBA Torres Brasil Ltda., a
unit of SBA Communications Corporation (SBAC), for 686.73 million
Brazilian reais ($311 million). In addition, the country's largest
mobile phone company in terms of clients, Telefonica Brasil SA
(VIV, VIVT4.BR), sold some of its telecom towers.
Write to Rogerio Jelmayer at rogerio.jelmayer@wsj.com
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