MILAN, August 1 (Reuters) - The chief executive of INWIT is set to leave as part of a board reshuffle following the sale of most of Telecom Italia's stake in Italy's top telecoms tower firm, two sources familiar with the matter said.
Earlier this year Telecom Italia (TIM) agreed to sell a 12.4% indirect stake in Milan-listed INWIT to French investment firm Ardian for 1.3 billion euros ($1.33 billion), maintaining a residual indirect 3% holding.
Following the stake sale, an Ardian-led consortium will hold a 27% stake in INWIT, with Vodafone controlling 33% of a venture in charge of more of 22,000 mobile towers across Italy.
The deal is due to be sealed shortly, after the Italian government gave conditional clearance, and the termination of a shareholder agreement.
INWIT Chief Executive Giovanni Ferigo is expected to leave in the transition, the sources said.
INWIT is set to launch the process to appoint a new board as early as this week when it will timetable a shareholder meeting to be held by the end of September, the sources added, declining to be named as deliberations are not public.
Under existing plans, top investors Vodafone and Ardian are each going to present their own slate of candidates by the end of this month.
Ferigo's successor is expected to come from the British group's list, with the new chairman on Ardian's slate, the people said.
A former Telecom Italia executive Ferigo, 63, has been at the helm of INWIT, born as a spin-off of TIM's mobile tower operations, since 2018 and oversaw its merger with Vodafone's mast business in Italy.
INWIT makes the bulk of its revenue by long-term contracts with TIM and Vodafone to host their respective mobile antenna infrastructure on its masts. It is targeting revenues of 850-860 million euros this year.
INWIT, Vodafone, Ardian and Telecom Italia all declined to comment. ($1 = 0.9757 euros) (Reporting by Elvira Pollina Editing by Keith Weir)
Telecom Italia (TIT.MI)
Vodafone (VOD)