Acquisition

RNS Number : 4902I

Bigblu Broadband PLC

05 December 2022

 

Bigblu Broadband plc

("BBB" or the "Company" or the "Group")

Acquires Uniti Satellite Customer base

and consideration of potential ASX listing for SkyMesh

Bigblu Broadband plc (AIM: BBB.L), a leading provider of alternative superfast and ultrafast broadband solutions throughout Australasia and the Nordics, announces that its fully owned Australian business, SkyMesh PTY LTD has conditionally completed the acquisition of the Satellite operations of Harbour ISP PTY LTD, a subsidiary of Uniti Group LTD in Australia (the "Acquisition"), for a total consideration of up to AUD$5.2m (c.£2.9m), to be satisfied from existing cash resources including our revolving credit facilities with Santander.  The acquisition is conditional on the appropriate FIRB regulatory and NBN Co Limited network approvals being obtained in Australia.

The satellite operations being acquired currently consist of c.6k customers. Post completion following the relevant approvals having been obtained, the customer base will be transferred to SkyMesh who will provide full ongoing support services from its Australian Customer Engagement Centre. Pursuant to the terms of the acquisition agreement, Uniti will continue to provide services for up to three months post completion to ensure a smooth transition of the customer base. The transfer of the customer base is expected to be immediately earnings enhancing.

Following completion, the Directors anticipate that the acquired operations are expected to generate annualised revenues of c.£2.5m and EBITDA of c.£0.7m with positive cash generation, enabling the Group to continue to reinvest and grow the business in the Australian market. Pro forma previous 12 months revenue and underlying adjusted EBITDA for the operations being acquired were £2.4m and £0.6m respectively.

The Directors believe that the profitability of operations being acquired should improve under Bigblu Broadband's ownership due to the Group's better operational gearing and economies of scale and SkyMesh's dedicated focus on customers in this sector. The Board will continue to focus on creating significant shareholder value through the rapid scaling of its Australasian Operations. In addition, the Board also continues to explore all options to realise value for BBB shareholders from SkyMesh, which could include a potential ASX listing of SkyMesh.

The trading update for the year ended 30 November 2022 will be issued on 12^th December 2022.

Andrew Walwyn , CEO of BBB plc, said:"SkyMesh, our Australian business, is an excellent operation and we are delighted to work with Uniti on this transaction as we seek to rapidly scale our Australasian operations in order to increase options for creating Shareholder Value within the Group."

Michael Simmons, CEO of Uniti Group said:  "After a period of discussion we are delighted to have concluded a transaction for our satellite customers to the ambitious market leading Australian business, SkyMesh. We will continue to provide support services during the transition period and know these customers will be well looked after." 

For further information:

Bigblu Broadband Group PLC	www.bbb-plc.com
Andrew Walwyn, Chief Executive Officer Frank Waters, Chief Financial Officer	Tel: [phone]
finnCap (Nomad and Broker) Marc Milmo / Simon Hicks / Charlie Beeson (Corporate Finance) Tim Redfern / Harriet Ward (ECM)	Tel: [phone]

About Bigblu Broadband plc

Bigblu Broadband plc (AIM: BBB.L), is a leading provider of alternative superfast and ultrafast broadband solutions throughout Australasia and the Nordics. BBB delivers a portfolio of superfast and ultrafast wireless broadband products for consumers and businesses unserved or underserved by fibre.

High levels of recurring revenue, increasing economies of scale and Government stimulation of the alternative broadband market in many countries provide a solid foundation for significant organic growth as demand for alternative ultrafast broadband services increases around the world.

BBB's range of solutions includes satellite, next generation fixed wireless and 4G/5G FWA delivering between 30 Mbps and 150 Mbps for consumers, and up to 1 Gbps for businesses. BBB provides customers a full range of services including hardware supply, installation, pre-and post-sale support, billings and collections, whilst offering appropriate tariffs depending on each end user's requirements.

Importantly, as its core technologies evolve, and more affordable capacity is made available, BBB continues to offer ever-increasing speeds and higher data throughputs to satisfy market demands for broadband and broadband services. BBB's alternative broadband offerings present a customer experience that is similar to that offered by wired broadband and the connection can be shared in the normal way with PCs, tablets and smart phones via a normal wired or wireless route.

 

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