N28 billion diesel bill drives airtel to explore solar options
- Business and Networking
- September 25, 2024
One of Nigeria’s premier mobile networks, Airtel, has begun exploring the option of solar energy. This is as a result of the company expenditure on diesel fuel. Despite Nigeria’s relatively cheap diesel costs compared to most African countries, the sheer lack of constant power supply has driven several companies to rely heavily on diesel powered generators.
- Airtel, one of Nigeria’s top telecommunications companies, is exploring the use of solar energy due to high diesel costs.
- The company spent ₦28 billion on diesel, prompting them to seek more affordable and sustainable power options.
- The move is intended to reduce operational expenses and confront Nigeria’s ongoing energy issues.
As reported by the Punch newspaper, Airtel, one of Nigeria’s top telecommunications companies, spent a staggering ₦28 billion on buying diesel.
As a result, the company is looking to adopt the use of solar energy as a more affordable way to power its telecommunications infrastructure.
This was revealed by the company’s Director of Corporate Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility, during a media roundtable in Lagos on Tuesday, pointing to its company records in May.
As well as reducing operational expenses, the move is intended to foster sustainability as it confronts Nigeria’s ongoing energy troubles.
As indicated by Harmanpreet Dhillon, Chief Technical Officer of Airtel Nigeria, the organization is currently looking at solar power and other alternative energy sources.
According to a report released by the company in September last year, Airtel’s revenue in Nigeria grew by 23%, driven by growth in voice, data, and mobile money usage.
Additionally, Airtel Africa’s customer base in Nigeria also grew by 7.8% to 59.8 million, while its mobile money customer base grew by 19% to 36.5 million.
This was despite the challenges posed by the naira devaluation, and its steep diesel expenditure.
