Poland’s Inea sold to Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund

Private equity firm Warburg Pincus has agreed to sell its majority stake in Polish cable operator, Inea, to a fund managed by Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA).

The deal, which was agreed for undisclosed terms, will see Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 5 (MEIF5) take control of the fibre-to-the home and cable provider.

Inea offers cable TV, broadband, fixed and mobile telephony services to residential and business customers in Poland.

Warburg Pincus initially bought a minority stake in Inea in 2013, before taking a majority position in the company to support the growth of the business – including the construction of a 4,500 km fibre optic backbone network.

Under Warburg’s ownership, Inea has also increased its last mile network footprint from 360,000 to 500,000 homes passed, with a further 200,000 homes-passed expansion already contracted with the support of EU funds.

“We are pleased at the progress we have achieved through our partnership with Warburg Pincus,” said Janusz Kosinski, Inea co-founder and president of the board. “I have truly enjoyed a multi-dimension support from Warburg Pincus and look forward to partnering with Macquarie and leveraging their strong telecommunications infrastructure experience to support Inea’s further growth.”

Adarsh Sarma, managing director, Warburg Pincus, said: “As growth investors, we feel privileged to have supported Inea in building the best quality operator with the best infrastructure in the country.”

Leigh Harrison, European head of Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets, added: “With considerable potential to expand the business we are delighted to work alongside Inea’s current management to continue strengthening its position as the preferred telecommunications infrastructure access and service provider in the region.”

Inea claims to be the “most modern and highest quality network” in Poland with a stated average download speed of 70 Mbps and commercial available download speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps. It also claims to have more last mile fiber coverage than rivals like Orange, Netia and UPC.

Inea was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Poznan, Poland.