UPDATE: Ghana regulator instructs ATC to reconnect Telecel

The National Communications Authority (NCA) of Ghana has instructed network tower provider American Tower Corporation (ATC) to reconnect the power supply to the network equipment of Telecel Ghana.

The instruction follows a meeting with Ghana's Ministry of Communication and Digitalisation and the NCA held on Friday, July 5, 2024.

ATC Ghana was instructed to reconnect all Telecel Ghana sites by midday on Saturday, July 6, 2024, and retract its statements about Telecel Ghana in the media.

The NCA said it will arbitrate the issue between Telecel Ghana and ATC which came to a head last week.

In a statement, Telecel Ghana thanked its affected customers for their patience and assured them of continuous service delivery.

How Telecel and ATC got here

The issue between the companies started late last week when ATC Ghana suspended power supply to operator Telecel Ghana's network equipment due to the latter allegedly not fulfilling its payment obligations.

However, in a scathing response, Telecel Ghana denied ATC Ghana's claims, labelled its accusations utterly false, and threatened legal action.

"Telecel Ghana reserves the right to use all lawful means to protect its brand and claim damages it will suffer as a result of the publications and any unlawful actions taken by ATC Ghana," the telco warned.

ATC Ghana was instructed to reconnect all Telecel Ghana sites by midday on Saturday, July 6, 2024, and retract its statements about Telecel Ghana in the media.(Source: Image by ASphotofamily on Freepik)

The fight with ATC Ghana could have detrimental effects on Telecel, which has been working toward cementing its grip on the Ghanaian market.

Telecel is the second-biggest operator in Ghana, but its subscriber base of around 8.9 million mobile users at the end of March 2024 was far behind market leader MTN Ghana's 27.8 million customers, according to data from Omdia.

In October 2023, Telecel expanded its network infrastructure by adding 300 new 4G sites and introduced 4G+ to offer even faster speeds.

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*Top image source: Image by evening_tao on Freepik

— Matshepo Sehloho, Associate Editor, Connecting Africa