Passive telecom infrastructure provider Indus Towers has achieved a significant milestone in its Africa expansion by starting to generate revenue from towers deployed in Zambia and Uganda during the September quarter ending September 2026. According to reports from The Economic Times, the company plans to begin deployment in Nigeria this quarter as part of its phase rollout plan. CFO Abhishek Maheshwari confirmed during the company's second-quarter earnings call that the early capital expenditure per tower remains within planned levels, validating their cost model during the initial rollout phases. "Turning to Africa, we have successfully deployed towers in Zambia and Uganda in quarter two and also started generating revenue. In line with our phase rollout plan, we are set to begin deployment in Nigeria during the current quarter," Maheshwari stated. The move represents a strategic pivot for Indus Towers as it seeks to capture long-term growth opportunities in international markets beyond its traditional base in India.
The company has identified Africa as a long-term growth opportunity beyond its core Indian business, leveraging its experience in deploying and managing telecommunications infrastructure. As reported by The Economic Times, Indus Towers is offering lower-cost solutions in African markets, where Airtel remains its primary anchor customer. Managing director Prachur Sah noted that initial deployments began in the latter part of the September quarter, though the business has not yet reached scale for detailed performance metrics to be shared with stakeholders. "So, in the subsequent quarters you will see us putting out the meaningful metrics out there for you to see. But as of now, it is not at scale," Sah explained. The expansion follows the industry standard for shared-infrastructure business models in telecommunications, with Indus Towers extending this model by scaling it into emerging African markets to improve cost efficiency and challenge established regional players.
Indus Towers demonstrated strong growth in its core Indian operations during the quarter. According to The Economic Times, the company added 2,869 towers, taking its total tower base to 270,480, representing a 5.6% increase from the previous year. Additionally, co-locations or operator tenancies on towers increased by 7,903 during the quarter to 440,153, up 5.9% year-on-year. The company has begun engaging potential customers beyond its anchor tenant to build upon its shared-infrastructure model. These additions reflect the company's continued focus on expanding its network footprint in its core Indian market while maintaining operational efficiency.
Looking ahead, Indus Towers plans to share more operational and financial metrics in subsequent quarters as the African portfolio reaches a more representative scale. As reported by The Economic Times, the company's engineering expertise, experience in optimising equipment costs and vendor ecosystem are expected to help differentiate it from established players in Africa. The expansion of shared tower infrastructure typically leads to more reliable mobile coverage and faster deployment of network services for local residents. Consumers in these regions can expect improved connectivity options as Indus Towers integrates its infrastructure with local providers. The move demonstrates that tower-sharing models are increasingly viewed as the most viable path for telecom growth in developing markets, with operators and consumers alike monitoring how equipment cost optimization impacts service pricing in the coming years.
