…N620.5bn H1 capex supports 100m subscribers, 14.8GB monthly usage
…Data revenue rises 38.4% to N1.699trn
More than 100 million subscribers, 14.8GB of monthly data consumption and a 20 Mbps median download speed are beginning to show the payoff from MTN Nigeria’s N620.5 billion first-half capital investment.
The figures point to a network expanding faster than demand, while growing smartphone penetration and wider coverage continue to push data usage higher.
The H1 capital programme forms part of a larger N1.62 trillion network infrastructure investment deployed by MTN Nigeria since January 2025 across about 66,000 sites.
The investment has supported tower upgrades, spectrum deployment, fibre expansion into new locations and the rollout of fifth-generation (5G) services, which has reached 730 sites across 27 states.
Independent network measurements published by the Nigerian Communications Commission this quarter show that median download speeds on Nigerian networks increased from 16.5 Mbps at the beginning of the year to 20 Mbps by mid-year, reflecting the impact of network upgrades implemented since 2024.
The infrastructure expansion has come against a difficult operating backdrop for telecommunications companies, with diesel prices roughly doubling since 2023, significant naira depreciation and a 50 percent increase in mobile data tariffs in January, the first such review in almost a decade.
MTN Nigeria’s subscriber base crossed 100 million during the week, while average data consumption per user increased 15.2 percent year-on-year to 14.8GB per month. Smartphone penetration in Nigeria also reached 66.4 percent, providing a larger base of users capable of consuming higher volumes of mobile data.
For MTN Nigeria, the combination of subscriber growth and increased usage is strengthening the commercial case for continued investment in network capacity.
Data revenue reached N1.699 trillion in the first half of 2026, representing a 38.4 percent year-on-year increase, generated from 55.7 million active data users.
The revenue performance reflects both expansion in the number of Nigerians using mobile data and higher consumption among existing users, with 4G and 5G coverage extending into areas that previously had limited broadband access.
Energy costs emerge as key constraint
Beyond network capacity, energy costs remain one of the biggest structural challenges facing telecommunications infrastructure in Nigeria.
MTN Nigeria’s 2025 energy mix was dominated by diesel, which accounted for 58.11 percent, followed by independent power producer gas at 23.63 percent and the national grid at 18.04 percent. Renewables accounted for just 0.05 percent.
The company has begun shifting that mix through investments in renewable energy, with the potential to reduce the cost of powering its network over time.
In June, MTN Nigeria signed its first utility-scale solar agreement, contracting 34MW of solar capacity across eight major sites through the First WATT partnership.
A rising renewable contribution could gradually reduce dependence on diesel and improve the underlying economics of delivering mobile data, particularly as data traffic continues to expand.
Infrastructure faces persistent operating pressure
The network expansion is also taking place amid persistent attacks on telecommunications infrastructure.
Yahaya Ibrahim, chief technology officer of MTN Nigeria, disclosed in August that the company’s fibre and tower infrastructure faces about 450 vandalism incidents each day, ranging from fibre cuts to attacks on towers that require sites to be rebuilt.
The scale of the disruption adds another layer of operating costs for network operators already dealing with elevated energy, equipment and foreign-exchange-related expenses.
Yet the network continued to deliver higher median speeds, expand 5G coverage and accommodate more than 100 million subscribers despite the infrastructure losses.
The ability to maintain service quality under these conditions underscores the role of capital expenditure in network resilience, rather than capacity expansion alone.
5G, fibre investment to drive next phase
MTN Nigeria’s investment cycle is expected to remain focused on extending network capacity and coverage as data consumption rises.
The operator plans to deepen 5G coverage beyond its existing 27-state footprint, while continued fibre deployment is expected to connect more underserved corridors and provide additional capacity for growing mobile broadband traffic.
