America Movil and Austria’s state holding company OeBAG agreed to spin-off A1 Telekom Austria’s infrastructure assets into a separate entity, and committed to ramp investment in the company’s 5G and fibre networks.

Carlos Slim-owned America Movil, which holds a majority 51 per cent stake in A1, stated it had agreed with OeBAG to support a plan to spin off towers in most of the countries A1 operates in, including home market Austria.

OeBAG owns just under 29 per cent of A1.

The companies will maintain their stakes in the operator and the spin off, which will be listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange.

A1 stated it is looking to separate its tower assets to give it a cash boost, aiding the expansion of its overall investment plans.

Furthermore, should the spin-off complete, both shareholders have agreed on an investment programme to expand connectivity infrastructure in the country, including fibre and 5G.

Despite the backing of America Movil and OeBAG, the spin-off is subject to required corporate and regulatory approvals.

The mooted tower move taps a trend among other European players including Orange and Vodafone Group to separate their infrastructure businesses to generate revenue from passive assets to fund next-generation networks.