Two of the largest shareholders in Italian tower company Inwit are considering a bid ​to buy out minority shareholders in the company.

As reported by Reuters, French private equity firm Ardian and investment vehicle Oak Holdings 1 are exploring a move to finance a potential take-private deal for Inwit.

Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane (Inwit) is Italy's largest tower company with around 26,000 towers across the country.

The company's future has been subject to previous speculation, when it was reported earlier this year that infrastructure fund Ardian and investment group Brookfield were interested in taking the Italian ​company private.

At present, Ardian controls 32 percent of Inwit, while Oak Holdings 1, which is backed by co-investors GIP, Vodafone, and KKR, owns 39 percent of the company.

Reuters reports that Ardian and Oak Holdings are currently in talks with banks to finance a bid, with one source noting that Abu Dhabi investment firm Mubadala is expected to take a stake in Inwit as part of the plan.

Inwit, previously listed in Milan back in 2015, is valued at $7.1 billion, though this figure is down 27 percent over the past year.

The company is currently embroiled in a dispute with Italian carriers Telecom Italia (TIM) and FastWeb over existing tower agreements.

TIM and Fastweb+Vodafone announced plans to form a tower-focused joint venture back in March, shortly before informing Inwit of their plans to terminate existing tower Master Service Agreements (MSA).