By Stuart Condie

SYDNEY--TPG Telecom Ltd. is reviewing strategic options for its mobile tower assets after its first-half profit slipped 5.7%.

The ASX-listed telecommunications provider said it had started the review to obtain a preliminary assessment of the assets' value. Rival Telstra Corporation Ltd. this year sold a 49% stake in its larger mobile infrastructure business at a higher valuation than anticipated by analysts, prompting an expectation that TPG could follow suit.

"While the company is continually seeking opportunities to maximize shareholder value, it has not made any commitment in relation to these assets," TPG said on Friday.

TPG operates a mobile network of 5,800 rooftops and towers, and owns passive infrastructure on about 1,200 of those sites, most of which are in metropolitan areas.

Telstra devoted the proceeds from its asset sale to a share buyback, debt reduction and regional network improvements.

TPG, which was formed in June 2020 by the merger of Vodafone Australia and the old TPG fixed-line business, reported a proforma net profit for the six months through June of 132 million Australian dollars (US94.4 million), compared with A$140 million a year earlier.

Revenue fell 3.0% to A$2.63 billion on a proforma basis due to headwinds from the Australian government's national broadband network and a Covid-driven loss of mobile customers.

Proforma earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization dropped 3.5% to A$886 million, hit by a A$25 million headwind from the national broadband network and a A$62 million headwind from a drop in mobile gross profit

TPG lost 136,000 mobile subscribers over its fiscal first half. Tourists previously represented a significant market for Vodafone Australia due to brand recognition, so TPG has been badly hit by Australia's Covid-driven border closure.

Statutory profit rose by 8.4% to A$7.6 million, TPG said. It reported a 71% lift in revenue to A$2.63 billion due to the incorporation of a full contribution across the period from the old TPG's fixed-line business.

The company declared an interim dividend of 8 Australian cents per security.

Write to Stuart Condie at stuart.condie@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

08-19-21 1937ET