Naira Boost, improved revenue drives IHS Towers to profitability since 2021

IHS Towers, Africa’s largest independent telecom tower company, has eventually turned a profit ending a streak of steep losses since 2021. The tower company recorded a $30.7 million profit in the first quarter of 2025. This marks a significant turnaround from a $1.5 billion loss in the same period of 2024, a performance sure to be welcomed by investors.

The shift to profitability was largely fueled by the appreciation of the Nigerian naira in the current quarter and a substantial $1.45 billion decrease in net finance costs. Nigeria remains a critical market for IHS, accounting for 58% of its operations, and currency fluctuations there have historically posed significant challenges.

Despite lingering macroeconomic headwinds from currency volatility, IHS reported a 5.2% uptick in organic revenue to $439.6 million. This growth was attributed to foreign exchange resets, power indexation, and continued expansion from tenants, lease amendments, and new site activations.

“This has been a strong start to 2025 with solid growth across our key metrics of revenue, adjusted EBITDA and ALFCF,” said Sam Darwish, IHS Towers Chairman and CEO. He added that the strong performance “is a continuation of the trends we have seen in recent quarters as we benefit from the commercial and financial progress that was made during 2024 and into 2025.”

IHS Towers’ bounceback to profitability has been a long time coming. For the full year 2024, it reduced its losses to $1.64 billion from $1.98 billion in 2023. The fourth-quarter profit was a turnaround from a loss in the same period last year, but it didn’t offset the full-year losses, largely due to factors like unrealised FX losses.

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The improving backdrop in Nigeria, marked by greater stability in the naira and recent tariff increases, is bolstering confidence. Stronger performances from major clients like Airtel and MTN Nigeria, both of which have returned to profitability, are also key drivers for IHS’s improved fortunes and its continued push for 5G rollout across its markets.

The company’s stock price, which hovered around $2 for much of 2024, has seen a remarkable recovery, now trading at $6.25 (down a modest 0.080% from yesterday). IHS is also actively pursuing shareholder value by divesting non-core assets, having recently concluded the sale of its operations in Kuwait and Peru, and now eyeing the disposal of its Rwanda operations.