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December 25, 2024

Amid concerns, MAFAB explains 5G operations, plans 102 sites

By Upfrontdigital News 0 12 Views

By Favour Unukaso

AMID concerns of not deploying services two years after obtaining the Fifth-Generation (5G) network licence from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Mafab Communications has said that it is steadily advancing the technology in Nigeria.

The NCC granted licenses to MTN Nigeria and Mafab Communications Limited to roll out 5G services on August 24, 2022. The licenses are valid for 10 years. The firms paid $273.6 million each for 100MHz of the 3.5GHz band.

The licensees were required to roll out service in at least one state in each geo-political zone within the first two years. Further rollout was expected in six additional states in the third and 5th years.

Roll out in each state is expected to be a minimum of five sites per state.

In January 2023, Airtel also got licensed by the telecoms regulator. The telecommunications firm paid the NCC $316.7 million for 100 MHz of spectrum in the 3500 MHz band. Airtel also purchased 2×5 MHz of 2600 MHz to improve its 4G coverage.

While there have been visible efforts in terms of deployment by MTN and Airtel, nothing was forth coming from Mafab, almost 18 months after getting the license, raising concerns about the firm and its handlers and most importantly, its (Mafab) defence by the telecoms regulator.

5G Mast

After months of delay in rolling out services, MAFAB publicly launched its services in Abuja on 24 January 24, 2023, and in Lagos on January 26, 2023. At both media launch, the firm said services were targeted at six cities – Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Kano and Kaduna. But since the public show, nothing was heard about service roll out.

Today, NCC statistics as of October 2024, puts 5G penetration at 2.33 per cent in Nigeria, meaning that some 3.6 million of the country’s 157.6 million active users are using the technology.

As of first quarter of 2024, MTN had invested over $120 million in expanding 5G coverage since it began commercial operations in the country covering over 30 cities. Airtel too boasts of significant deployment across the country.

NCC EVC, Maida

But Mafab has reached out to The Guardian, saying its 5G journey has been very much on course.

The Chief Operating Officer, Adebayo Onigbanjo, said Mafab Communications Limited is steadily advancing its 5G network rollout across Nigeria.

Onigbanjo said the efforts of the firm, have been primarily focused on building a robust infrastructure and extending coverage in key cities such as Kano and Abuja to ensure reliable and widespread 5G access.

He told The Guardian that significant investments have been made in Radio Access Network (RAN), Transport and ⁠Intelligent Network all in a bid to enhance the firm’s 5G infrastructure, with the rollout progressing in phases.

“Our target is to build 102 operational sites in these select cities by the end of the first quarter of 2025, which will enhance connectivity in those areas,” he stressed.

Speaking on challenges confronting the sector and operators, the Mafab COO, said as with many players in the telecommunications industry, foreign exchange (FX) fluctuations have been one of the major challenges, leading to increased rollout costs compared to the initial projections.

“Despite these setbacks, Mafab Communications remains fully committed to delivering on its mandate whilst, continuing to adjust and innovate in order to contribute to Nigeria’s digital transformation,” Onigbanjo stated.

COO, Onigbanjo

Earlier in the licensing period, a document had revealed some of the plans Mafab was hoping to explore to get hold of the market.

In the document, the company disclosed it was going to the market to raise $350 million via equity to finance the cost of the spectrum licence and other associated projects costs.

In the document, Mafab is not only looking to raise $350 million via equity, but also intends to raise $1.59 billion via debt to complete a total of $1.9 billion funding activity. Mafab planned to offer 70 million units of its shares at N5 for equity funding.

The company had a broad target of deploying into over 6,000 sites within a five-year period. It intended to deploy into 1,000 sites in the first year, 2,500 in the second year, 4,000 in the third year, 5,000 in the fourth year, and 6,000 in the fifth year. Within that timeline, the company also hoped to have grown its subscriber base to 7.5 million.

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