Laos is a relatively new market for towercos, with the national government and local firm Click Lao Marketing and Consultancy signing an agreement with China Tower Corporation (CTC) to establish the Southeast Asia Tower company in 2018. In 2019, EDOTCO presented a filing at the Bursa Malaysia announcing its entrance into Laos via the purchase of an 80% stake in local entity Mekong Tower Company Ltd. (MTCL).
However, EDOTCO are yet to build any towers since Q4 2020, meaning they still only own 14 towers nearly four years after entering the country.
Laos - telecom market statistics Q3 2024
Things appear to be on the up for the country though, as Malaysian tower builder OCK Group signed a shareholder agreement with Laos Ministry of Finance to expand its presence in the country. OCK Laos TowerCo will be a joint venture between the two parties, with OCK owning a controlling 70% stake.
In May 2024, OCK marked its entry in the Laos tower market, having signed a tower lease agreement with Best Telecom. OCK will build and lease telecommunication towers to Best Telecom in major cities in Laos over a 15-year period. OCK will support Best’s 5G rollout in the country with the launch of the network targeted for by the end of 2024, after having been awarded 5G licence in the country.
Laos - estimated tower ownership Q3 2024
The country is home to five MNOs, three of which are owned by the government. TPlus, ETL and LaoTel, are joined by Viettel back Unitel and Best. The market holds great potential for growth with only 80% SIM penetration with 5.6mn mobile connections and 7.2mn inhabitants. Some degree of sharing exists within the government owned operators as TPlus have access to 1,000 of LTC’s towers.
