MTN Nigeria Communications Plc recorded a N400.4 billion loss after tax in the full year of 2024 despite a 35.9% growth in revenue to N3.3 trillion.
This is according to its audited financial results for the year published on the NGX website.
MTN’s financial performance continues to be impacted by record-high inflation and the naira’s devaluation, exacerbating the businesses’ operational expenses.
The telco’s net foreign exchange losses, a recurring feature since the Central Bank of Nigeria unified the foreign exchange market, increased by 24.98% to N925.36 billion from N740.43 billion in 2023.
Impacted by Naira devaluation
MTN noted that the devaluation of the Naira significantly impacted the company’s business in the year.
“In the foreign exchange market, the naira depreciated to N1,535/US$ by the end of 2024 (from N907.1/US$ on 31 December 2023), as businesses and consumers continued to grapple with escalating costs.
“These headwinds significantly impacted MTN Nigeria’s costs, particularly those related to tower leases and other foreign currency obligations,” said Karl Toriola, chief executive officer of MTN Nigeria.
- He, however, said that MTN took some comfort from the improvement in US dollar liquidity in the forex market and reduced volatility over the course of the year, as the naira exchange rate held relatively stable through H2.
- The company noted it would have recorded a profit after tax (PAT) of N247.3 billion if not for its net foreign exchange loss.
Subscriber growth
MTN said it made significant progress in driving the growth of commercial operations, boosted by its ongoing investments in the coverage and capacity of its network to accommodate traffic growth and enhance the quality of service.
- According to the company, this was a major focus of its N443.5 billion capex (ex-leases) in the year.
- MTN’s subscriber base climbed further to 80.9 million, up 1.6%, despite the effects of the Nigerian Communications Commission’s (NCC) industry-wide directive on NIN-SIM registration.
- Likewise, active data subscribers grew by 7% to 47.7 million.
“Our diligent gross connection and churn management initiatives, including ongoing innovation in our customer value propositions, supported the growth of our subscriber base,” Toriola said.
Future outlook
The telco remains upbeat about its future outlook and is focused on restoring a positive net asset position in 2025.
The telco highlighted that the recent tariff hike will boost its 2025 revenue by at least 40 percent and help it increase its CapEx intensity.
“In terms of our balance sheet, we aim for a recovery in our retained income and shareholders’ equity positions to positive balances within the next 12 months.
“However, the near-term uncertainties in our macro environment, including exchange rate and potential price elasticity from the new tariff implementation, may impact the trajectory of our recovery. We will monitor developments and update our stakeholders as appropriate while we continue to drive our growth ambitions,” the MTN CEO stated.
What you should know
MTN Group, the parent body of MTN Nigeria, had in a trading statement released on Thursday, notified its shareholders of a significant decline in its earnings per share (EPS) for the full year that ended on 31 December 2024, primarily due to forex losses recorded from Nigeria.
- The Group also expects its headline earnings per share (HEPS) to decline despite the company’s strong underlying performance.
- It, however, acknowledged that the approval of tariff adjustments by regulators in Nigeria, announced in January 2025, was a significant milestone in ensuring the long-term sustainability of its business and the telecoms industry in the country.
- The MTN Group’s financial results for the full year of 2024 are expected to be announced on or about Monday, 17 March 2025.
