IHS Towers has laid claim to being the third-largest tower company globally on the back of a string of recent acquisitions in developing nations.
In a statement, the tower company said it was the fourth largest independent owner of shared telecommunications infrastructure with a portfolio of 31,000 towers at the end of last year.
In the run, up to fourth, IHS entered the Egyptian market through a licensed partnership, bought a controlling stake in Brazil-based FiberCo from TIM and acquired 5,709 towers in South Africa from MTN. The latter deal is expected to make IHS the leading tower provider in South Africa upon close of the deal.
The company continued its acquisition spree in January this year when it acquired 2,115 towers in Brazil from Grupo Torresur, and upon completion made it the third-largest tower firm with a footprint of 38,000.
IHS Towers chairman and CEO Sam Darwish said the company has credited the success to the “deepened” commitment to Africa and building entry into Latin America and the Middle East. While noting further opportunities will arise this year as some emerging markets launch commercial 5G.
“We remain excited about the digital infrastructure opportunities available to us in emerging markets, where our critical infrastructure and approach to sustainability helps connect underserved communities to bridge the digital divide. We look forward to more opportunities in 2022 as several of our key markets such as Brazil and Nigeria begin to rollout 5G technologies.”
IHS’ tower footprint spans nine countries on three continents.
Financial results
IHS ended 2021 with a revenue of US$1.5 billion a 12.6% year-on-year increase from US$1.4 billion. Most notably the company cut profit loss down from US$322 million to US$26 million. Adjusted EBITDA stood at US$926 million a rise of 13.1% from US$819 million
For Q4 revenue saw a 12.1% increase to US$415 million, as loss stood at US$72 million as opposed to a profit of US$50 million in 2020. Adjusted EBITDA was stagnant at US$216 million.
