Telecom
MTN Raises Expenditure in Nigeria to $1Bn
MTN group has raised Nigeria’s capital expenditure (Capex) target for 2016 to about $1 billion from $700 million, despite the outstanding $3.4 billion fine issued on the telecom giant by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC),
Krishna Chetty, acting MTN South Africa chief technology officer disclosed this in Johannesburg yesterday.
MTN is Nigeria’s largest telecommunications network with about 60 million subscribers.
The increased capex spending by MTN may be used to improve its network-service quality and rolling out a 4G offering.
MTN Nigeria had initially withdrawn its court case challenging the NCC’s authority to issue such a huge amount of fine and made a N50 billion payment in February 2016 to meet the government’s condition for out of court settlement.
Currently negotiations between MTN Nigeria and the Federal Government are ongoing and this move by MTN to increase its capital expenditure in the country despite the outstanding amount to be paid as fine, suggests that the ongoing negotiations may yield positive fruit industry analysts said.
Ferdi Moolman, CEO MTN Nigeria, said that the company is positioned for growth and investing in different things, especially broadband services.
MTN Nigeria recently acquired Visafone, the last surviving code division multiple access (CDMA) in Nigeria.
“We have started looking at 4G and Visafone had frequency which allows us to do this extension, so if we want to start rolling out 4G and we want to take better services to the public we had to acquire a platform that will enable us do this,” Moolman said.
“We see huge potential and growth in Nigeria and Mtn wants to be part of that growth. We would like to take this company from just a telco network to something that is a people’s company,” he said.
The NCC had initially issued MTN a fine of N1.04 trillion ($5.2), relating to the timing of disconnection of the 5.1 million active MTN subscribers with improperly registered SIM cards calculated at N200, 000 for each subscriber.
Monday, 16, November 2015, was set as the deadline for payment of the fine. However, MTN pleaded for leniency and the deadline date was extended until negotiations had been concluded.
On December 4, 2015, MTN Group corporate affairs issued a release stating that although the NCC had initially sent MTN a letter that it had taken the decision to reduce the fine imposed on the MTN Nigerian business from the original N1,040,000,000,000 (One trillion, forty billion Naira) to 674 billion Naira, a reduction of 35% of the original fine which had to be paid by December, 31, 2015, a second letter which was stated to supersede the first letter was sent which informed the Company that the fine had actually been reduced by 25% to 780 billion Naira and not by 35% to 674 billion Naira, as was stated in the first Letter. The payment date remained the same.
MTN met the Federal government’s condition to pay a substantial amount of the fine before commencing out of court settlement by paying N50 billion and the announcement of increased CAPEX for this year shows that negotiations are yielding positive results and not stopping the growth of MTN in Nigeria.
Nigeria’s telecom operators recorded 155, 397 fibre-cut incidents between April and May 2026, and these they blame on why internet or calls suddenly stop working.
Data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) showed fibre-cut incidents increased from 74 276 in April to a record 79 121 in May, bringing the two-month total to the highest level recorded by the industry.
This represents a 2 428% increase from the 5 934 incidents reported during the first quarter of 2026.
Vandalism remained the leading cause of fibre cuts, accounting for more than 54 000 incidents despite telecom infrastructure being designated as Critical National Information Infrastructure, a classification intended to strengthen protection of key digital assets.
Also road construction constantly damages fiber where iggers and machines tear up buried cables during road repairs or construction.
Even with all these, some state governments make it hard for companies to fix cables quickly across different areas with all manners of fees and levies.
The NCC designation provides for penalties of up to 10 years’ imprisonment for offenders, but operators continue to face widespread infrastructure damage.
Proposed solutions, including Nigeria’s Dig-Once policy and AI-powered fibre sensing technologies, have yet to achieve widespread adoption.
The NCC is developing a cost-based framework for shared underground duct infrastructure, while operators are exploring AI-powered fibre sensing technologies that can detect cable damage in real time and improve network resilience.
Nigeria is pursuing ambitious broadband targets under its National Broadband Plan and has expanded fibre deployment to about 35 000 kilometres.
However, infrastructure protection has not kept pace with network expansion, leaving subscribers vulnerable to unreliable connectivity despite continued operator investment.
Standard Bank has partnered with Helios Towers to provide a $29 million Social Documentary Credit Facility. According to the financial services company, this transaction marks Standard Bank’s first Documentary Credit Facility structured in a Sustainable Finance format.
It notes that the facility will support the procurement and importation of telecommunications infrastructure and related services across Africa.
It will also provide payment certainty to suppliers, while supporting Helios Towers’ working capital requirements and infrastructure expansion programme, the bank adds.
Structured in accordance with the Loan Market Association’s Social Loan Principles, the financing is designed to promote digital connectivity and telecommunications infrastructure development in underserved markets.
This will help Helios Towers further expand its footprint and enhance mobile network coverage and connectivity across the continent.
Helios Towers operates one of Africa’s independent telecommunications tower platforms, enabling mobile network operators to extend coverage across multiple markets.
Standard Bank notes that the facility supports the expansion of tower infrastructure and services, increased network densification and improved connectivity in underserved markets and remote regions across the African continent.
It will also drive digital inclusion and tackle the digital divide while supporting economic growth and socio-economic development.
“This transaction demonstrates the power of innovation in trade finance. By combining a first-to-market Social Documentary Credit Facility with a cross-border funding solution, Standard Bank has supported Helios Towers’ growth ambitions while helping extend digital connectivity to underserved communities across Africa,” says Benoit Samouilhan, global transaction banker at Standard Bank Corporate and Investment Banking.
According to the bank, this facility enables positive social impact by increasing and improving network coverage and connectivity in some of the world’s most remote regions.
“Reliable digital infrastructure is fundamental to Africa’s future growth and development,” says Alex Carter, group finance director at Helios Towers.
“This facility provides us with the flexibility and certainty needed to support our ongoing infrastructure investments while advancing our mission of expanding connectivity across the continent. We value our longstanding relationship with Standard Bank and look forward to building on this partnership.”
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) will on Thursday convene a stakeholders’ consultative forum to review the draft business rules for Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) in Nigeria.
NCC
The forum, scheduled to hold at 10 a.m. at the NCC Annex Office, Mbora, Abuja, is expected to bring together telecommunications operators, industry associations and other stakeholders to provide input on the proposed regulatory framework before its finalisation.
The commission announced the event on its official social media platforms, inviting interested stakeholders to participate in the consultation process.
The engagement is part of the NCC’s efforts to strengthen the regulatory framework for MVNO operations and promote greater competition, innovation and consumer choice in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector.
Mobile Virtual Network Operators are telecommunications service providers that offer mobile services by leasing network capacity from licensed Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), rather than owning spectrum licences or telecommunications infrastructure.
The NCC has identified the MVNO licensing framework as one of its initiatives aimed at deepening competition, expanding access to telecommunications services and driving digital inclusion across the country.
The consultative forum is expected to provide stakeholders with the opportunity to review the draft business rules, make recommendations and contribute to the development of a robust operational framework for the emerging MVNO segment.
The commission is expected to issue further details on the outcome of the consultation after the meeting.
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