Rural communications firm NuRAN Wireless has signed a ten-year deal with MTN Group to deploy at least 250 sites across rural South Sudan.
Under the terms of the deal, NuRAN will deploy the sites over the next two years, with the first 50 sites using towers already owned by MTN to ensure the rollout has a swift start. The infrastructure will be operated on a network-as-a-service model (NAAS) basis while revenue will be shared using the BOOT (build, own, operate, and transfer) model.
Surveys on MTN’s sites have already commenced, with NuRAN working with local firm Tandem Solution on the deployment. CommsUpdate reports that the in its current form deal represents approximately CAD57 million (US$44.5 million) in revenues, although it will be possible to build out more sites as well as leverage terrestrial backhaul networks to boost capacity, thereby increasing ARPU and overall revenue.
Diatile Zondo, CFO of MTN South Sudan, said: “At MTN we believe that everyone deserves a connected life therefore our strategy is to bring connectivity to these rural parts. We hope that this is the beginning of a growing relationship with NuRAN.”