Tenancy Gains Drive Helios Towers’ Strong H1 Performance, Reports 7% Revenue Growth
The company, which owns and operates more than 14,000 tower sites in nine countries, reported a 7% rise in revenue to $418.3 million for the first half of 2025.
Telecommunications infrastructure group Helios Towers has posted a robust set of half-year results, highlighting strong financial and operational momentum across its African and Middle Eastern markets. The company, which owns and operates more than 14,000 tower sites in nine countries, reported a 7% rise in revenue to $418.3 million for the first half of 2025. This growth was fuelled largely by an uptick in new tenancies, with the total number of tenancies reaching 30,617—a 7% increase from the same period last year.
The company’s adjusted EBITDA climbed to $225.5 million, reflecting a 9% year-on-year increase. Profit after tax came in at $30.9 million, a significant turnaround from the $24.5 million loss reported a year earlier. Helios also saw a marked improvement in its cash position, with free cash flow swinging from a deficit of $9.8 million in H1 2024 to a positive $29.9 million. Net leverage declined from 4.2x to 3.8x, reinforcing the company’s ongoing deleveraging efforts.
In a statement, CEO Tom Greenwood noted that the first half results reaffirmed the strength of Helios Towers’ business model.
“We are extremely pleased with the progress we have made as we approach the culmination of our ‘2.2x by 2026’ strategy. We have achieved what we set out to, with our successful platform integration supporting free cash flow inflection and expansion, setting the business up for the next phase of our strategy. Our Capital Markets Day, scheduled for November 6, will outline that new five-year strategy, our ambitious targets and new capital allocation policy, all of which will position us to maximise value for all our stakeholders”
-Tom Greenwood, CEO, Helios Towers.
Much of the growth continues to be anchored in Africa, where the company operates in Tanzania, Ghana, DRC, South Africa, Senegal, Malawi, Madagascar, and Congo Brazzaville. Central and Southern Africa remained the strongest contributor to the group’s performance, generating $216.3 million in revenue during the half-year period—more than half of the group’s total. East and West Africa followed with $165.2 million, while Helios’ single Middle East market, Oman, accounted for $36.8 million in revenue.
Tenancy ratios improved across the board, a key metric in tower infrastructure that reflects the number of mobile operator clients per site. Central and Southern Africa led with a tenancy ratio of 2.23x, slightly ahead of East and West Africa at 2.16x. Oman’s tenancy ratio also climbed, reaching 1.72x from 1.56x in the prior year. These gains reflect Helios Towers’ strategic focus on co-locations, allowing multiple mobile network operators (MNOs) to share tower infrastructure and reduce overall costs.
Helios Towers’ customer base remains overwhelmingly composed of large, multinational MNOs, accounting for 99.5% of contracted revenues, which currently stand at $5.3 billion. The average remaining initial contract life across its portfolio is 6.8 years, underlining the long-term nature of the company’s revenue streams. The built-in protections within these contracts—such as adjustments linked to CPI and energy prices—have helped shield the company from cost volatility, particularly in high-inflation environments like Ghana and Malawi.
Operational efficiency remains a core focus, with the group reporting 99.99% power uptime and a 95% local employment rate across its operations. ESG performance also featured prominently, with the company maintaining a ‘AAA’ ESG rating from MSCI and retaining its position in the FTSE4Good Index. Helios also reported that women now make up 29% of its workforce—a figure it aims to improve as part of its 2026 Sustainable Business Strategy.
Looking ahead, the company has reaffirmed its full-year guidance, including a target of 2,000 to 2,500 new tenancy additions and adjusted EBITDA of between $460 million and $470 million. Capital expenditure is expected to range between $150 million and $180 million. With a strong foundation in place and continued demand for digital connectivity across emerging markets, Helios Towers appears well positioned to navigate the second half of the year and to chart a new growth trajectory beyond 2025.
As Africa and the Middle East continue to push for broader mobile coverage and 5G readiness, infrastructure players like Helios Towers will remain pivotal in enabling operators to expand sustainably and efficiently. With population coverage now reaching 156 million and counting, Helios’ network continues to provide the silent backbone for mobile connectivity in some of the world’s most dynamic telecommunications markets.
