MTN Group is poised to make a significant impact in the artificial intelligence landscape, expanding beyond its traditional telecom roots. According to reports from Bloomberg, the company is engaged in discussions with US and European partners to co-build data centres across Africa.
MTN CEO Ralph Mupita confirmed that commercial negotiations are underway, with the goal of finalizing deals before the year concludes. The company has allocated a substantial $240 million to establish its first AI-focused data centre in Nigeria under the new business unit, Genova. This unit will provide AI computing power to businesses and governments while leasing infrastructure to global cloud giants like Microsoft and Google.
Notably, MTN is considering investing in its own hardware to further solidify its position in the sector.
This strategic shift aligns with MTN’s broader objective to diversify its revenue streams by monetizing its infrastructure and repositioning itself beyond traditional mobile operations. Alongside its plans for connected homes via fibre and 5G broadband, the AI data centre initiative aims to tap into enterprise and government demand, unlocking new revenue opportunities.
The data centre landscape is becoming increasingly competitive, with Airtel Nigeria announcing plans to build the country’s largest hyperscale facility in Lagos, focusing on AI. This upcoming project, known as Eko Atlantic, is designed to rival not only MTN’s offerings but also global giants such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud. Airtel’s project boasts an impressive IT load of 38MW, significantly surpassing MTN’s current capacity at its recently launched $235 million Sifiso Dabengwa Data Centre.
As the race for data centre dominance intensifies, MTN’s bold move into AI-focused infrastructure positions the company for potential growth and innovation in the African tech landscape.
