Monday, May 1, 2006

Level 3 Buys TelCove for $1.2B

Broomfield, Colorado-based Level 3 Communications has made a major acquisition today, saying it will pay $1.2B to acquire TelCove, a Pennsylvania-based telecommunications firm. Level 3 said that it would pay $637M in stock, $445M in cash, and $155M in assumption of debt for the metropolitan and regional communications service provider. TelCove provides transport, Internet access and voice services across the eastern United States, and has annual revenues of about $390M. The controlling shareholder of TelCove is Bay Harbour Management. Level 3 said that it will integrate TelCove's metropolitan and regional networks into its national backbone network. The acquisition comes two weeks after the acquisition of Colorado Springs-based ICG Communications, another provider of telecommunications services, for $163M. Level 3 was advised by Morgan Stanley and Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, and TelCove by Merrill Lynch & Co., Houlihan Lokey Howard and Zukin and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP.