MTN Nigeria Communications Plc has invested more than N1.6 trillion in its network infrastructure since the beginning of 2025, as revenue from data services has overtaken voice revenue for the first time.
The company said the investment was necessary to expand its network capacity, improve service quality and meet the growing demand for internet services across Nigeria.
Speaking in Lagos, MTN Nigeria Chief Executive Officer, Karl Toriola, said the company invested N620.5 billion in the first half of 2026 alone.
He said this brought the company’s total capital expenditure since the beginning of 2025 to more than N1.6 trillion.
According to Toriola, the investment has expanded MTN’s network to more than 62,000 sites and 16 switching centres.
The expansion has also increased the company’s population coverage to 93.7 per cent for 2G, 87.6 per cent for 3G, 84.6 per cent for 4G and 12.8 per cent for 5G.
Toriola said MTN’s strategy was to increase network capacity ahead of demand to ensure that customers continue to enjoy quality services.
He explained that as customers consume more data, the company must invest in additional network capacity before it can generate revenue from the increased usage.
The investment comes as Nigerians continue to use more internet services.
MTN said its data revenue increased by 38.4 per cent to N1.70 trillion in the first half of 2026.
The figure was higher than the N993 billion generated from voice services during the same period, making data the company’s biggest source of service revenue for the first time.
The number of active MTN data subscribers also increased by 9.3 per cent to 55.7 million.
Smartphone penetration rose to 66.4 per cent, while average monthly data consumption per subscriber increased by 15.2 per cent year-on-year to 14.8 gigabytes.
MTN said the rise showed that Nigerians were becoming increasingly dependent on digital services for communication, business and other daily activities.
To handle the growing demand, the company said it was investing in network expansion, additional base stations, fibre infrastructure, 5G fixed wireless broadband and a new data centre.
MTN Chief Financial Officer, Modupe Kadri, said the company continued to invest heavily despite inflation, high energy costs and foreign exchange challenges.
He said MTN had also reduced its exposure to foreign currency loans after repaying all its outstanding obligations.
According to Kadri, the company previously had foreign debt of up to $417 million in 2023.
He said clearing the debt had helped MTN reduce its exposure to fluctuations in the foreign exchange market.
Kadri, however, said continued investment in the telecommunications sector would require a stable and predictable regulatory environment.
He called for policies that would support long-term investment, a workable pricing system and protection of critical telecommunications infrastructure.
He also disclosed that MTN injected about N1.5 trillion into the Nigerian economy through payments to local suppliers and service providers in the first half of 2026.
The company also remitted N622.6 billion in taxes, spectrum fees, import duties, Value Added Tax and other statutory payments during the period.
The Nigerian Communications Commission said the telecommunications sector currently contributes about 9.2 per cent to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product.
The growing contribution reflects the increasing importance of telecommunications to Nigeria’s economy, digital inclusion and the development of the country’s digital economy
