MTN earmarks R1.5bn to keep network going during load-shedding

MTN has set aside R1.5bn to keep its network up and running during load-shedding, as well as to protect network equipment and backup power from thieves.

Mobile operators have struggled as extended power cuts have sometimes depleted the batteries of their cellphone towers, leading to customers losing their signal.

With persistent load-shedding and a rise in vandalism and theft aggravating SA’s fragile economic recovery and affecting service delivery, MTN’s SA unit says it is pushing up its network resilience drive with this investment.

At a media briefing on Thursday, Jacqui O’Sullivan, executive for corporate affairs at MTN SA, said the funds have been set aside for network resilience for the 2023 financial year which includes spending on batteries, site hardening, spare parts and generators. 

Like its competitors, it has had to increase spending on security as its network sites are targeted increasingly by criminals stealing and vandalising its generators, batteries, solar panels and network equipment.

According to estimates from its 2022 annual results, power outages cost MTN R695m. This amounts to 3.4% of local core earnings of the R242bn company. 

This expenditure eats up money that could be invested in network expansion or improving service quality.  

During 2022, MTN deployed more than 2,000 additional generators to counter the effects of stage 4 and higher load-shedding. It now uses more than 400,000l of fuel a month to keep these generators going. Vodacom has spent close to R2.5bn on backup power for its towers in the past three years.

MTN SA head Charles Molapisi said the company’s nationwide programme is aimed at alleviating “the adverse impact of this crisis on the nation, its people and the economy. This includes further progressing the rollout of our network availability plan and aiming to have all current sites upgraded by the end of May in this phase of the programme.

“The investment will see us installing solar power, batteries and generators, and enhancing security features at base stations to ensure improved network availability during load-shedding, when many instances of theft and vandalism occur. In future, we expect to be completely off the grid at most sites so that these problems do not affect the quality of our service.” 

MTN, like its competitors, has had to increase spending on security as its network sites are targeted increasingly by criminals stealing and vandalising generators, batteries, solar panels and network equipment.

Security risks and damage have risen to a point where the operator has now redesigned its sites to include bunkers to house its backup power equipment. 

Damage to equipment can result in it taking up to four days to get a cellphone tower back up and running. It is suspected that the theft and vandalism is being committed by sophisticated criminals and syndicates. 

The worst-hit province, according to MTN, is the Eastern Cape where more than 1,000 vandalism incidents have been recorded. In rural and undeveloped terrain it is harder for technicians and security staff to attend to breaches.

Studies have shown that bouts of load-shedding have a direct correlation with the spike in vandalism and battery or generator theft at network sites. For example, during the period of stage six load-shedding last year there was a major escalation in the number of attacks, with tower companies recording a 250% increase in the loss of generators.  

gavazam@businesslive.co.za