MTN proceeds with ATC Ghana sale

24 March 2020 | Melanie Mingas

Nigerian telecom operator MTN has received regulatory approval for the sale of its 49% stake in ATC Ghana.

The sale is expected to generate $384 million with funds due to be transferred over the coming week. It follows the sale of MTN’s 49% stake in ATC Uganda.

The divestment strategy is part of MTN’s “asset realisation programme”, initiated in March 2019 to “reduce debt, simplify our portfolio, reduce risk and improve returns”.

A statement issued by MTN read: “This takes the total proceeds received for the disposal of both ATC Uganda and ATC Ghana to R8.9 billion, which will be applied to paying down US-dollar debt and general corporate purposes.”

In its full year 2019 financial results, MTN saw revenue grow 9.7%, while service revenue increased 9.8% and subscriptions grew by 18.2 million to reach 251 million. Further, the group’s chief executive Rob Shuter, announced he will step down at the end of his current contract, in 2021.