By Emmanuel Oluebube, Senior Correspondent UK
One of the largest independent owners, operators and developers of shared telecommunications infrastructure in the world by tower count, IHS Holding Limited has reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021.
IHS Towers Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Sam Darwish stated, “I am pleased to be reporting our results today for the fourth quarter and full year 2021, as IHS delivered continued, strong financial and operational performance while accomplishing many actions that further strengthen our position.
In addition to listing on the New York Stock Exchange in October, IHS executed a US$1 billion bond offering and refinancing, entered the Egyptian market through a licensed partnership, closed the TIM Fiber transaction to create I-Systems, a leading fiber company in Brazil, and announced agreements to acquire MTN’s portfolio of 5,709 towers in South Africa, which we expect will make IHS the leading independent tower company in South Africa upon closure.
We ended 2021 as the fourth largest independent multinational tower company with over 31,000 towers spanning nine countries on three continents and, in January 2022, we announced the acquisition of the GTS SP5 portfolio of 2,115 towers in Brazil, after which IHS will become the third largest towerco in Brazil. I am delighted to say that, following consummation of the South African and GTS acquisitions, IHS will become the third largest independent multinational towerco globally by tower count, with over 38,000 towers.
As we have shown, we have deepened our commitment to Africa while also pursuing our diversification strategy, building upon our entrance into Latam and the Middle East, and continuing our strong investment in organic growth, including in ancillary technologies such as small cells, DAS and fiber. 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.”
