Infratil will pay $1.8 billion to raise its stake in One NZ (formerly Vodafone NZ) from 49.95 per cent to 99.90 per cent as it buys out its Canadian partner Brookfield Asset Management.

The NZX-listed firm will fund the deal through the issue of $850 million worth of new shares, cash and debt facilities of $950m. Retail investors will be able to participate via a $100m offer.

The deal gives One NZ an enterprise value of $5.9 billion.

Vodafone PLC sold its New Zealand operation to Infratil and Brookfield in a 2019 deal that valued the business at $3.4 billion.

Each took a 49.95 per cent stake, with chief executive Jason Paris and other senior managers holding the balance.

The deal will make One NZ easily the largest asset in Infratil’s portfolio, pushing it ahead of its half-share in CDC, which was recently re-valued upwards by a third to $3.1b.

The deal announced this morning comes on the heels of Infratil delivering a strong full-year result, underpinned by strong performances by data centre operator CDC and One NZ.

One NZ - which booked $28m in rebranding costs during the period ahead of its change from Vodafone NZ on April 1 - saw its ebitdaf rise 9.7 per cent to $527.8m, ahead of Forsyth Barr’s estimate of $520m in a year that saw high-margin roaming revenue return to 80 per cent of pre-Covid levels and the partial sale of One NZ’s celltower network.

Infratil saw even higher profits ahead. One NZ operating earnings for FY2024 were forecast at $580m to 620m - handily ahead of Jarden’s estimate ($540m) and ForBarr’s punt ($550m).

Net debt at end of FY2023 was $1.38b from the year-ago $1.34b.

Revenue was $1.98b, nearly flat on FY2022′s $1.97b.

One NZ kicked off its new financial year on April 1 with its rebrand from Vodafone NZ, and the its announcement it would partner with Elon Musk’s Starlink for 100 per cent mobile coverage - initially with text messaging - from late next year. 2degrees and Spark have since revealed deals with putative Starlink rival Lynk.

A retail offer booklet is due on June 13. The closing date for share applications is June 27.

Infratil says it expects the deal to close shortly after the share placement.