(Telecompaper) France's Iliad has announced exclusive negotiations with Spanish infrastructure operator Cellnex Telecom for the sale of 70 percent of the company managing its mobile telecom infrastructure in France and 100 percent of the company managing its passive mobile towers infrastructure in Italy. The agreement encompasses 5,700 sites in France plus 2,200 sites in Italy and is worth an initial EUR 2 billion, said Iliad, adding that the transaction would help to strengthen its balance sheet and general financial position as well accelerate 4G and 5G mobile rollouts in France and Italy.