MTN Moves Closer to Full IHS Towers Ownership as South African Regulator Sets Access Conditions
MTN Group is moving closer to acquiring full ownership of IHS Towers, after South Africa’s Competition Commission approved the proposed $2.2 billion transaction, subject to conditions designed to protect fair access to the telecommunications infrastructure by competing operators.
The approval, issued on September 30, would allow MTN to increase its ownership of IHS Towers from its existing stake to 100%, but requires safeguards around how the infrastructure will be made available to MTN’s competitors.
Regulator Seeks Fair Access for Competitors
The Competition Commission said the transaction raises competition and public-interest concerns because MTN South Africa will become the owner of tower infrastructure that is also used by competing mobile network operators.
Under the conditions attached to the approval, IHS infrastructure must remain available to mobile network operators and other customers on fair, equitable and non-discriminatory terms.
The conditions are intended to prevent MTN South Africa from receiving preferential treatment because of its ownership of the infrastructure.
Existing IHS customers must also be able to renew their lease agreements on fair terms, with no customer placed at a disadvantage compared with MTN South Africa.
The Commission said the measures are designed to preserve competition while protecting existing customers and employment.
MTN Agreed to Buy Remaining IHS Stake
MTN announced in February that it had reached an agreement to acquire the 75.3% of IHS Towers that it did not already own, taking its ownership in the company to 100%.
The all-cash transaction is valued at approximately $2.2 billion.
MTN has said full ownership of IHS would strengthen its control of critical digital infrastructure and support the group’s broader infrastructure strategy across Africa.
According to MTN, IHS operates nearly 29,000 telecommunications towers across five key MTN markets in Africa.
The company provides shared passive telecommunications infrastructure to mobile network operators and other licensed operators, making its tower network an important component of the infrastructure used to deliver mobile and data services.
Conditions Cover Operations and Customer Information
The South African regulator’s conditions go beyond access requirements.
IHS must remain operationally independent, while measures will also be implemented to prevent MTN South Africa from receiving preferential access to competitively sensitive information belonging to other IHS customers.
The regulatory package also includes provisions covering employment, ownership and participation by historically disadvantaged persons, as well as opportunities for small, medium and micro enterprises involved in the development of new tower sites.
The conditions are intended to ensure that MTN’s ownership of the infrastructure does not undermine the competitive position of other telecommunications operators using IHS facilities.
MTN Highlights Infrastructure Benefits
MTN has argued that bringing IHS Towers fully into the group would enable it to scale its digital infrastructure platform, improve network performance and support the deployment of technologies including 5G and fixed wireless access.
Nompilo Morafo, MTN Group’s Chief Sustainability and Corporate Affairs Officer, said the company was pleased with the progress of the transaction through South Africa’s competition process.
“The parties believe the transaction will be beneficial to the entire industry and, accordingly, have offered certain conditions which they consider to fully address any competition and public interest concerns,” Morafo said.
She described the South African approval process as an “important milestone” following regulatory approvals and clearances in other markets.
Transaction Awaits Further Regulatory Processes
The South African decision follows progress on the transaction in oth
The regulatory processes reflect the cross-border nature of the proer African markets.
According to Morafo, these include approval in principle from the Nigerian Communications Commission, as well as approvals in Zambia involving the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa and the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority.posed acquisition and IHS Towers’ infrastructure footprint across several African telecommunications markets.
Balancing Ownership and Infrastructure Competition
The transaction places MTN in a position where it would own a major tower infrastructure provider while continuing to compete with other operators that depend on that same infrastructure.
The conditions imposed by South Africa’s Competition Commission are therefore focused on maintaining open and non-discriminatory access to IHS infrastructure and preventing the ownership structure from creating an unfair competitive advantage for MTN South Africa.
For MTN, full ownership of IHS would provide greater control over an important part of its digital infrastructure strategy. For competing operators, the regulatory safeguards are intended to preserve access to shared telecommunications infrastructure on commercially fair terms.
The proposed acquisition therefore remains subject to the regulatory framework governing how IHS infrastructure is operated and made available to the wider telecommunications industry.
