March 7 (Reuters) - Vodafone New Zealand said on Monday that it had initiated the process of a potential sale of its passive mobile telecommunication towers, which cater to nearly 98% of the population.
Bloomberg News reported on Friday that Vodafone New Zealand was seeking buyers to raise $1 billion through the sale.
The Auckland-based telecom provider did not, however, disclose any financial details of the sale on Monday. It said it had engaged Barrenjoey and UBS as advisers.
The sale of the tower portfolio - which consists of roughly 1,487 wholly owned mobile towers spread across the country - is expected to help generate core profit of NZ$51 million ($35 million) in 2023, the company said. ($1 = 1.4616 New Zealand dollars) (Reporting by Indranil Sarkar in Bengaluru; Editing by Kevin Liffey)