IHS Towers agrees to buy Helios Towers Nigeria

10 Mar 2016
Chibuike Oguh

Summary

IHS will acquire HTN’s portfolio of 1,211 towers spread across 34 states in Nigeria.

Issam Darwish, Executive Vice Chairman and Group CEO, IHS Towers

IHS Towers, Africa’s leading telecoms infrastructure firm, has reached a deal to acquire Helios Towers Nigeria (HTN), a telecoms infrastructure firm in Nigeria.

According to a press statement released on Thursday, IHS Towers said it agreed to acquire the entire issued share capital of HTN, which is owned by Helios Investment Partners, Pembani Group, First City Monument Bank (FCMB) and other minority shareholders.

Under the agreement, IHS will acquire HTN’s portfolio of 1,211 towers spread across 34 states in Nigeria. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2016.

“This transaction is significant in that it combines Africa’s two original tower companies and will enable us to strengthen our service offering to our customers while focusing on their needs,” said Issam Darwish, IHS’s Executive Vice Chairman and Group Chief Executive Officer.

IHS Towers owns over 23,000 towers spread across five countries in Africa, including Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Zambia, and Rwanda. The company owns over 15,000 towers in Nigeria, its biggest market.

“We remain committed to the Nigerian tower market where coverage levels are yet to mature and explosive data growth continues. The growing data traffic and increased smartphone use presents an exciting market opportunity for IHS, with the potential for up to 40,000 more towers required to meet this demand,” said Darwish.

IHS Towers and HTN established the mobile telecommunications infrastructure industry in Nigeria in the early 2000s and this transaction will be the first in-market consolidation in Africa.

“IHS is the natural buyer of our business and we believe their deep knowledge and extensive experience in the sector will help to continue the strong level of customer service already being achieved by HTN,” said Inder Bajaj, HTN’s Chief Executive Officer.


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