La Caisse, the global investment group formerly known as Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec (CDPQ), has invested around Rs 12,100 crore (CAD 1.76 billion or about $1.3 billion) to acquire a 24% stake in Altius Telecom Infrastructure Trust, India’s largest independent telecom tower platform, alongside Brookfield.

The transaction has been completed, with Brookfield continuing as Altius’ largest investor alongside La Caisse and existing shareholders affiliated with GIC and British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI).

The investment comes as rising mobile data consumption and the continued rollout of 5G drive demand for telecom and digital infrastructure in India, the world’s second-largest telecommunications market.

“As India’s economy grows and more people and businesses rely on higher use of mobile data, the infrastructure behind those connections needs to keep pace,” Emmanuel Jaclot, executive vice-president and head of infrastructure and sustainability at La Caisse, said.

La Caisse, Canada’s second-largest pension manager, has experience investing in telecom towers and digital infrastructure globally. Jaclot said the investment was being made alongside Brookfield and other institutional partners with which it has longstanding relationships.

Sam Pollock, CEO of Brookfield’s Infrastructure group, said Altius had built a scaled, nationwide platform that was well positioned to cater to India’s growing mobile connectivity and 5G requirements.

“La Caisse’s investment brings another long-term institutional partner to the platform and reflects confidence in the strength of the business,” Pollock said.

Altius owns and operates more than 258,000 telecom towers and sites across India, providing infrastructure used by mobile operators to deliver 4G and 5G services. Its portfolio includes ground-based towers, rooftop towers, camouflage towers and cell-on-wheels.

Brookfield and its partners will continue to support Altius’ next phase of growth by deploying Brookfield’s owner-operator capabilities and taking a long-term approach to infrastructure investment, Pollock said.

The investment gives La Caisse exposure to India’s expanding digital infrastructure market while further strengthening the institutional investor base of Altius, as operators increase network capacity to meet growing data demand.