Telecom tower infrastructure provider Bharti Infratel on Friday said that it was open to mergers and acquisitions (M&As) to strengthen its business.

“We are open for all inorganic growth, which is good for our business. We can’t give any timeline, as we always look for strong partners who are viable for positive and healthy growth for us,” DS Rawat, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Bharti Infratel, told BusinessLine .

Rawat said the company was open to tying up with BSNL’s towers (which it already has partnered with in many circles), once the latter separates its tower business.

On the tower business, he said some technologies and innovations were already in place, such as solar and lithium-ion battery-operated stations, although these are not commercially feasible right now. The company reported a consolidated net profit of ₹579 crore for the quarter ended September 30, up 25 per cent, compared to ₹465 crore in the corresponding period last year.

Revenue also rose 4 per cent during the quarter to ₹3,038 crore, against ₹2,930 crore in the July-September quarter in 2014.

“Mobile data is going to be the pillar of growth for the Indian telecom industry. We are already witnessing clear signs of accelerated 3G and 4G rollouts by operators, with multi-fold increase in such installations, compared to last year,” said Akhil Gupta, Chairman of Bharti Infratel.

In addition, the sector is also seeing increased focus on quality of service and possible utilisation of unused spectrum. These trends are positive for tower companies, he added.

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