The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is ramping up efforts to promote renewable energy use, particularly solar power, across the nation’s telecoms industry, with the goal of cutting diesel dependency and slashing operational costs.
Telecom operators in Nigeria reportedly consume no less than 40 million litres of diesel each month to power network infrastructure, amounting to over $350 million (₦534.16 billion) annually, according to the State of Africa’s Infrastructure Report 2025 by the Africa Finance Corporation.
The report warned that a growing number of tower sites operating off-grid or depending on diesel generators presents serious challenges, increasing capital and operational expenditure and making rural investments economically unviable.
Nigeria’s electricity grid currently generates under 5,000 megawatts, drastically short of the nearly 200,000MW needed nationwide, forcing individuals and businesses to rely heavily on diesel and petrol generators.
With 172.95 million telecom subscribers and 34,862 towers (as of 2022), uninterrupted electricity supply is crucial. The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has stated that diesel alone makes up around 35 percent of telecom operating expenses.
“The biggest constraint in the telecom industry is high energy cost. If the government had fulfilled its commitment from the early 2000s to provide 18 hours of electricity daily, much of the capital we now spend on powering sites would have been saved,” said ALTON President Gbenga Adebayo.
Energy demand continues to grow as internet penetration deepens. In April 2025, monthly internet usage reached 983,283.43 terabytes, representing a 685.69 percent increase from December 2019. While the global energy requirement per gigabyte is roughly 0.17 kWh, it stands at about 0.24 kWh per GB in Africa due to lower energy efficiency in networks.
To address this, the NCC has partnered with the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) to establish a framework that supports renewable energy adoption for telecom infrastructure. Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, said the collaboration targets both power and connectivity shortfalls.
“Whether it’s powering a base station or enabling a child to access digital learning, this partnership can reshape lives and expand opportunity,” he said.
“This goes beyond infrastructure. It’s about inclusion, reducing inequality and fostering shared prosperity.”
The joint committee will focus on integrated approaches that fuse renewable energy with telecom infrastructure, aligning financing models, sharing geospatial data to aid planning, and monitoring socio-economic impact with measurable indicators.
According to GSMA, renewable energy could help telecom operators cut operational costs by 30 to 50 percent, while also significantly reducing carbon emissions in line with national climate goals. NCC sources say that telcos could realise cost savings of at least 20 percent through renewable energy adoption.
Some operators are already moving in that direction. Airtel is piloting hybrid power solutions using lithium batteries and solar, and both MTN Nigeria and Airtel have renegotiated tower leases with infrastructure providers ATC and IHS to prioritise energy efficiency. MTN anticipates savings between ₦100 billion and ₦110 billion from the renegotiation.
Nigeria’s solar energy capacity, averaging 5.5 kWh/m²/day, presents a major opportunity for telecoms to transition to cleaner and more sustainable energy sources. Yet, challenges remain. ALTON’s Adebayo noted that renewables may not guarantee 24-hour backup, and their equipment is often targeted for theft.
Still, GSMA figures show that renewables already power 70 percent of telecom operations in Europe, 40 percent in the United States, and just 10 percent in Sub-Saharan Africa, demonstrating the technology’s capacity to support large-scale telecom infrastructure.
