MTN Group closes in on tower deal amid wider breakup

All plans are in place for the MTN Group to complete the sale and lease-back of the South African towers by the end of September. A separation of the FinTech and optical fiber units is also being developed as the wireless service provider works to pay off its debt.

According to Bloomberg Intelligence analysis, the tower operation could generate up to R111 billion (about US$745 million) for the Group. The fintech move is expected to be completed by March and fiber over the next two years, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

Africa’s biggest mobile phone company is more than two years into a transformational breakup project, shedding assets and exiting markets to focus on core businesses around the continent. A key aspect is to cease operations in the Middle East, and MTN has abandoned its Syria operation as regulatory demands prevented a more orthodox exit, the group said.

The shares rose more than 5% in Johannesburg in morning trading. The stock has gained almost 96% this year, the best performer on the FTSE/JSE Africa Top40 Index.

MTN confirmed it is not going to resubmit a bid for a new license in Ethiopia, which is opening up the market to international operators for the first time. A previous offer by the carrier and various partners was rejected by the Ethiopian government.

Sales grew by 2.1% in the six months through June, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization rose by 6.6%. The group outperformed in its home market of South Africa, where revenue gained 12%.

The carrier cut debt to R36.7 billion from about R43.3 billion. MTN has also repatriated $474 million this year from Nigeria, where it has historically been hard to extract cash due to a lack of foreign exchange.

Sales grew by 2.1% in the six months through June, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization rose by 6.6%. The group outperformed in its home market of South Africa, where revenue gained 12%.

The carrier cut debt to R36.7 billion from about R43.3 billion. MTN has repatriated $474 million this year from Nigeria, where it has historically been hard to extract cash due to a lack of foreign exchange.