MTN Group is looking to sell and lease back part of its portfolio of 13 000 South African telecommunications towers, a sign that new CEO Ralph Mupita is looking to build on a disposal plan kicked off by his predecessor.

The group is considering “the strategic and financial merits” of the plan, Mupita said in an interview on Wednesday. The move would build on similar transactions MTN has completed in countries such as Ghana and Uganda, he said.

Under former CEO Rob Shuter, the Johannesburg-based mobile operator kicked off a plan to raise R15-billion to help pay down debt, completing the project earlier this year. MTN then announced an intention to exit the Middle East region, with talks under way to sell its Syrian operation. The company recently generated about R2.3-billion from the long-awaited disposal of a minority stake in e-commerce group Jumia Technologies.

Mupita, the former chief financial officer, took over from Shuter on 1 September.

International wireless carriers have been queuing up to sell tower assets in recent months to help realise cash, with funds needed for anything from debt repayments to developing 5G networks. Vodafone Group is considering raising about €4-billion from an initial public offering of its European unit early next year, people familiar with the matter have said, while billionaire Li Ka-shing’s conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings agreed to sell towers to Spain’s Cellnex Telecom last month for €10-billion.

Demand increasing

Demand for additional masts is increasing in Africa to cope with the migration of millions of young people to smartphones and faster broadband. South Africa, the continent’s most industrialised nation, is in the process of rolling out 5G services.

Other potential sales for MTN include its interest in IHS Holding, Africa’s biggest tower operator, although plans for an initial public offering in New York have been pushed into next year, people familiar with the matter said last month. — (c) 2020 Bloomberg LP