Telekom Austria AG (WBAG:TKA) said that its supervisory board approved a decision to separate its mobile mast business in Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and North Macedonia into a new entity, without changing the ownership structure. The new company, which was not named, will comprise about 12,900 of A1's mobile towers across the six markets, A1 Group said in a press release on February 21, 2023. The spin-off will involve the distribution of shares in the new tower business to existing Telekom Austria shareholders in proportion to their current stakes.

The new company will be listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange. "We welcome this decision to spin off the passive infrastructure into a separate company. It offers strategically important perspectives and a long-term stable ownership structure.

It will make our network rollout faster and more efficient, which will benefit our customers and the business location," A1 Group CEO Thomas Arnoldner said. Earlier this month, A1 Telekom Austria Group received indication of support for the spin-off from its two shareholders, majority owner America Movil and Austrian state-owned holding Osterreichische Beteiligungs, or Obag. On February 21, 2023 Obag's supervisory board also gave the green light to the separation.

The spin-off is expected to be finalised during 2023, subject to required corporate and regulatory approvals, the group said last week. The separation of the passive infrastructure from the service business will make capital allocation more efficient and will allow Telekom Austria to increase its overall investment volumes and growth, both domestically and abroad, according to an earlier statement by Obag.