Bluebird Network, LLC, a Midwest telecommunications company, is being acquired by Macquarie Infrastructure Partners (“MIP”) for an undisclosed amount, the company said.
MIP is a long-term infrastructure investment fund that is managed by the Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (“MIRA”) division of Macquarie Group.
MIP has partnered with Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ: UNIT) to finance the transaction. Uniti will acquire Bluebird´s fiber network and then lease it back to Bluebird under a long-term lease.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary terms and conditions, and is expected to be closed by the end of the third quarter of 2019.
MVP Capital Advisors served as exclusive financial advisor to Bluebird on the transaction.
Bluebird, headquartered in Columbia, Missouri, was formed by integrating Bluebird Media and Missouri Network Alliance. In 2014, an underground data center was acquired and created Bluebird Underground, adding a data center facility to the Bluebird suite of services. Today, the network has over 5,200 fiber route miles of high-speed broadband and fiber-optic connections. The Bluebird fiber network also has over 127 Points of Presence (POP) sites spanning the Midwest, including the major cities of St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, and Tulsa. To learn more, visit www.bluebirdnetwork.com.
