There are three MNOs in the Zambian market; MTN, Airtel and start-up Beeline. IHS Towers acquired to portfolios of both MTN and Airtel and have most of the towers in the market. Local infraco Infratel operate ZAMTEL’s towers, with some rural sites owned by the regulator ZICTA. Rural specialist AMN is also active in the market doing network-as-a-service for MTN.
In addition to operating around 1,250 towers, Infratel also own three data centres and operate the country’s fibre backbone. MTN has also signed network-asa-service agreements with Vanu, who is entering the market to provide rural builds. Infratel had been commissioned by the MNOs to build macro towers in rural areas but this was unprofitable, so the Universal Service Fund has taken over these sites with Infratel providing managed services.
While usually a reliable and clean energy grid, poor draughts have led to massive loadshedding of around 12 hours per day. The whole telco industry is quickly moving to address these outages, with towercos looking at procuring energy equipment to improve back-up power even on on-grid sites.
Cost of financing in Zambia is high, but the World Bank has pledged US$100mn to fund broadband and last mile infrastructure deployments. IHS is rumoured to be exploring an exit of Rwanda and Zambia, as part of the towercos ongoing strategic review to help address a declining share price and raise capital to alleviate outstanding debt.
Zambia makes up a small proportion of the firm’s total footprint across Africa, the Middle East and LATAM. Selling these assets would allow IHS Towers to focus on its core Nigerian market which is facing significant challenges due to the volatile macroeconomic environment.
