Bharti Airtel sells towers in Tanzania to focus on subscription offerings

Telecom major Bharti Airtel’s Africa-focussed unit on Wednesday it has sold its Tanzanian tower operations for about $175 million ( ₹1,279.6 crore), as the telecoms company sharpens its focus on its core subscription services like voice and data packages.

Airtel Africa said it would distribute part of the proceeds to the Tanzania government in line with the terms of its public listing in 2019, adding that it would also use some of the cash to cut its debt.

The deal marks the latest strategic divestment of the group’s tower portfolio as it focuses on an asset-light business model and on its core subscriber-facing operations, the telco said in a regulatory filing.