Nigeria - Fixed Line Market and Infrastructure - Overview and Statistics

Synopsis

Nigeria is the most competitive fixed-line market in Africa, featuring a second national operator (SNO, Globacom) and over 50 other companies licensed to provide fixed telephony services. The alternative carriers combined now provide over 95% of all fixed connections while the ailing incumbent, Nitel, is looking for a new strategic investor and new business models to turn the company around. The majority of new fixed lines has been implemented using wireless technologies, which now gives the network operators the opportunity to also enter the lucrative mobile market under a new unified licensing regime and has helped them to secure hundreds of millions of US$ in investments from local and foreign investors. Several microwave and fibre-based national backbone infrastructures are being rolled out by various companies. While two new international submarine fibre optic cables are scheduled to reach Nigeria’s shores in 2009, which will also deliver a major boost to the country’s underdeveloped Internet and broadband sector.

Table of Contents

• 1. Synopsis
  
• 2. Fixed-line market and infrastructure overview
  
  • 2.1 Market analysis – 2009
    
  • 2.2 Unified licensing regime
    
  • 2.3 Fixed-line statistics
    
• 3. Fixed network operators in Nigeria
  
  • 3.1 Nigerian Telecommunications Ltd (Nitel)
    
    • 3.1.1 Network infrastructure
      
    • 3.1.2 National backbone network
      
    • 3.1.3 Wireless Local Loop (WLL)
      
    • 3.1.4 Services
      
    • 3.1.5 Towering debts
      
    • 3.1.6 The Pentascope period, 2003 - 2005
      
    • 3.1.7 The Transcorp period, 2006 - 2009
      
    • 3.1.8 Future direction
      
  • 3.2 Globacom Ltd
    
    • 3.2.1 Network infrastructure
      
    • 3.2.2 Fibre optic backbone network
      
    • 3.2.3 International presence
      
    • 3.2.4 Services
      
    • 3.2.5 International expansion
      
  • 3.3 VGC Communications
    
  • 3.4 National Long-Distance Operators (LDOs)
    
    • 3.4.1 Nepskom Communications Ltd (defunct)
      
• 4. Private fixed-wireless operators
  
  • 4.1 MTS First Wireless
    
  • 4.2 Mobitel Nigeria Ltd
    
  • 4.3 Prestel
    
  • 4.4 Regional FWA operators
    
    • 4.4.1 Sirius Wireless Ltd
      
• 5. Telecommunications infrastructure
  
  • 5.1 National Rural Telephony Program (NRTP)
    
  • 5.2 National backbone infrastructure
    
    • 5.2.1 National Information Infrastructure Backbone (NIIB)
      
    • 5.2.2 Galaxy Backbone Plc
      
    • 5.2.3 Suburban Telecom Ltd
      
    • 5.2.4 Phase3 Telecom
      
    • 5.2.5 Backbone Connectivity Network (BCN)
      
    • 5.2.6 Mobile operators’ national backbone networks
      
    • 5.2.7 Private networks
      
  • 5.3 Fibre to the Home (FttH)
    
  • 5.4 International infrastructure
    
    • 5.4.1 Submarine cable networks
      
    • 5.4.2 Satellite networks
      
• 6. Related reports
  

• Table 1 – Fixed lines in service, Nitel versus PTOs and teledensity – 1995; 1997; 1999 - 2009
• Table 2 – Fixed and fixed-wireless lines by operator and market share – March 2009

• Exhibit 1 – Regional FWA licensees in Nigeria