Marco Patuano has been proposed as the new CEO of Cellnex, effective June 4.
He will succeed Tobias Martinez, founding CEO of Cellnex, will step down on the previous day after leading the company for eight years and managing the successful expansion of the group to 12 countries in Europe.
Patuano has extensive experience in the telecommunications sector and extensive knowledge of the telecommunications tower ecosystem in Europe, as is the case with Cellnex, of which he was president for two years (2018-2019).
He also spent 25 years in executive positions at Telecom Italia (TIM) and developed his career in keymarkets in Europe and Latin America.
Commenting on the appointment, Anne Bouverot, chairman of Cellnex, said: “On behalf of the board of directors, I am pleased to welcome Marco as the new CEO of Cellnex after an exhaustive and careful selection process. Marco is a respected and experienced business leader with a deep understanding of the dynamics of the telecommunications industry and the European tower market. From the Council he will have our support in his responsibility to lead the new chapter of Cellnex “.
“I would also like to take the opportunity to thank Tobias for his exceptional leadership and the instrumental role he has played in building Europe’s leading telecom infrastructure operator”.
“Marco and Tobias will work together in the coming weeks to ensure a smooth transition after the shareholders’ meeting, thus facilitating the early achievement of the strategic priorities we announced in November last year, focused on driving organic growth, value creation and the reinforcement of the balance sheet, reaching, as a result, the qualification of investment grade”.
Patuano added: “I want to thank the Cellnex Board for the trust shown in proposing my appointment as the next CEO. Cellnex is a great company, with a bright future and if I have the support of the shareholders’ meeting, my commitment will be to the strategy announced in November 2022, which clearly aims at creating value, focusing on organic growth and the achievement of investment grade”.