Karl Toriola, MTN Nigeria’s chief executive officer, is confident that the telecommunication company will meet the three-month Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) ‘s service quality deadline.
This is after the NCC tied its 50 per cent tariff hike to improved network quality, “improved services and connectivity, including better network quality, enhanced customer service, and greater coverage.”
“We will now be measured on quality of service,” Toriola explained on Tuesday. He noted that the tariff increase would unlock more funds for the telco, which has been battling high operating costs.
He stated that when interest payments on loans, statutory licenses, and other obligations are added, the telco has no cash to pay its bills.
“We are spending 120 per cent of what we earn,” he said. Outside of these costs, the MTN boss explained that other hidden costs like fibre cuts, pegged at 1000 per month, and an economic slump that increased inflation to 34.8 per cent in December 2024 have also exacerbated the telcos’ cost of operations.
“Based on our projections, there would be more cash flow, meaning additional funding to expand and provide quality service, redundancy on our network and better customer experience,” Toriola explained.
Dinesh Balsingh, CEO of Airtel Nigeria, also shares Toriola’s sentiment, “The price increase will enable us to continue investing in network infrastructure, expanding coverage, and delivering improved products and services that meet the evolving needs of our customers.”
Despite its potential to unlock more funding for telcos, industry insiders note that the NCC has yet to approve the new tariff plans despite the announcement of approval.
“We don’t have the price increase in our hands because, even though it has been announced and based on Section 108, every single product that you want to increase its price has to go to the NCC, be iterated, and approved,” one source said, noting that telcos expect the regulator to respond this week.
