American Tower CFO Rodney Smith revealed business from European operators is beginning to pick up, with Germany currently the fastest-growing nation for the company in the region.

Smith told a JP Morgan technology conference an expansion in interest from European companies is a positive development in light of a deal to acquire Telxius Towers, which includes more than 10,000 sites in Germany.

In addition to Germany, American Tower owns sites in France and Poland. It will also own sites in Spain after the Telxius Towers deal closes.

Smith noted growth in some of American Tower’s other markets had remained strong throughout the Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, with Europe recently beginning to pick up.

American Tower valued its ATC Europe tower business at €8.8 billion including debt. Investment company Caisse de placement du Quebec (CDPQ) recently agreed to pump €1.6 billion into the unit, a move American Tower stated would fuel future expansion.

Smith pointed to Africa and India as key opportunities, driven by LTE uprgrades. American Tower is working closely with humanitarian groups to offer pandemic relief in India.

The CFO highlighted Latin America as another region where growth was unabated by Covid-19.

And US market trends are positive, Smith noted, predicting growth will continue into “at least the latter stages of 2022”.