Clifford Chance advises Tele2 on the Manulife IM-backed partnership with GCI to create the first pan-Baltic tower company

8 August 2025

Gregory Crookes, Tim Heerschop, Bart Van Hattum, Femke Buijs, Matthew Warner, Emely Luna, Folko de Vries , Yasmin Johnson, Nancy Stoke, Sarah Basilion (She/Her), Titus de Vries, Angela McEwan, David Woolmer, Tyson Reid, Herman Steinvoort, Elle Jackson, Bahar Sharif, Sylvia van der Heyden, Michiel Sunderman, Stern Flik, Jemma Dick, Aniko Adam, Daniel Ayad, Rahul Dev, Carla Lewis, Jacqueline Landells (She/Her)
Amsterdam, New York, Washington D.C., Brussels, London

Clifford Chance advises Tele2 on the Manulife IM-backed partnership with GCI to create the first pan-Baltic tower company

Global law firm Clifford Chance has advised long-standing client Tele2, a leading telecommunications provider, to create the first tower company covering all Baltic countries together entering into a 50/50 partnership with Global Communications Infrastructure LLC (“GCI”) which is backed by Manulife Investment Management (“Manulife IM”). The transaction enables Tele2 to unlock value in its mobile telecom infrastructure while enabling continued growth and rollout of mobile and 5G services in the region. The transaction values the tower company at EUR 560 million on a debt-free basis, and Tele2 expects cash proceeds of around EUR 440 million. GCI is a tower platform owned by Manulife IM, on behalf of clients, targeting investments in telecom towers globally.

The newly established Baltic tower company based in Lithuania will own tower and rooftop assets in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, a total of around 2,700 tower and rooftop sites. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to be finalised in early 2026. Read more about the transaction here.

The cross-border Clifford Chance team from Amsterdam, New York, Washington DC, Brussels and London was led by Gregory Crookes. The core M&A team included Tim Heerschop, Bart van Hattum and Femke Buijs. The core sector specialist team included Matthew Warner and Emely Luna. The core finance team included Folko de Vries, Yasmin Johnson and Samuel van Eijnatten. The wider team included Nancy Stoke, Sarah Basilion, Jasper Leistra (Corporate), Titus de Vries, Angela McEwan, David Woolmer, Tyson Reid, Herman Steinvoort, Elle Jackson, Bahar Sharif, Fiorri Michael, Sylvia van der Heyden (Global Financial Markets), Michiel Sunderman, Stern Flik, Cile Arnoldy and Jemma Dick (Tax), Aniko Adam, Daniel Ayad (Antitrust), Rahul Dev, Carla Lewis and Jacqueline Landells (Litigation).