IHS Towers has terminated its tower lease arrangement with 9mobile—now rebranded as T2—ordering the operator to vacate 2,576 tower sites beginning in Q3 2025. The decision follows a renegotiated agreement requiring T2 to settle part of its long-standing debt through July 2027 and comes amid the operator’s shrinking network and financial strain.
In its Q3 2025 financial report, IHS described 9mobile as its smallest key customer in Nigeria. The company posted $455.1 million in quarterly revenue, an 8.3% year-on-year rise. Despite organic growth, IHS reported significant site losses tied to T2, with 2,576 of 3,529 total tenant churn incidents originating from the operator. This shift reduces IHS’ total tenant count to 57,691.
For T2, leaving thousands of IHS sites threatens service continuity. The operator must now secure space from rivals like American Tower Corporation or rely heavily on its national roaming agreement with MTN Nigeria, approved in July 2025. While the MTN deal offers temporary coverage support, it cannot replace the long-term stability of leasing or owning tower infrastructure.
IHS is recalibrating its broader portfolio as it manages currency volatility and improves liquidity. The company has exited markets in Kuwait, Peru, and Rwanda, and now operates over 39,000 towers across eight countries. Nigeria remains its core market, hosting more than 16,000 towers and generating about 63% of its total revenue.
The breakup highlights ongoing challenges for T2, which has struggled since Etisalat’s 2017 exit and continues to battle subscriber losses, debt pressure, and reduced network footprint. The move also reflects wider stress in Nigeria’s telecom sector, where rising inflation, FX instability, and high infrastructure costs are forcing operators to rethink tower strategies.
T2 has yet to comment on how it will maintain adequate coverage once the tower exits take effect, but signs point to a focus on new investors and continued debt restructuring.
