Ethio Telecom raises installed solar capacity to 39.72 MW across its national network

Ethiopia's state-owned operator Ethio Telecom added 12.72 MW of solar generation capacity in its most recent financial year, bringing its total installed solar capacity to 39.72 MW across a national network that serves 87.1 million customers as of January 2026^[1].

What was deployed

During the financial year, the company commissioned 215 new solar-powered sites and modernised 774 existing base stations^[1]. Cumulatively, the operator has now deployed 190 fully solar-powered telecom sites, 867 hybrid solar-and-battery systems, and 1,114 lithium-ion battery storage units. According to the company, those installations have reduced diesel generator operating time by up to 40% across the network^[1].

The solar-on-tower approach - photovoltaic panels mounted directly onto telecom towers rather than on ground-level arrays - was developed with Huawei to address space constraints in dense urban areas such as Addis Ababa, where land for conventional installations is scarce. Initial results from that programme showed diesel generator use falling from six hours to two hours per day at pilot sites.

The investment figure

Ethio Telecom has allocated more than 42.4 million Ethiopian birr for this year's environmental programme, bringing cumulative spending on environmental protection and green development to over 159.9 million birr. The company also launched the eighth edition of its Green Legacy reforestation campaign, targeting 250,000 seedlings planted across its Addis Ababa headquarters and 18 regional offices^[1].

The renewable push sits inside the company's three-year "Next Horizon: Digital & Beyond 2028 Strategy," which frames green infrastructure - solar sites, hybrid power systems, green data centres - as integral to network expansion rather than a separate sustainability programme.

Why the economics work

Replacing diesel-powered base stations with solar and hybrid systems cuts fuel transportation costs and reduces the operational disruptions that have historically degraded network availability in areas with unreliable grid supply. For a network of Ethio Telecom's scale, a 40% reduction in generator runtime across hundreds of sites represents a material operating cost saving, not only a carbon benefit.

The pattern is not unique to Ethiopia. Across sub-Saharan Africa, operators are deploying on-site renewables for the same reason: grid instability makes diesel the default backup, and diesel is expensive. Orange in the Democratic Republic of Congo is rolling out over 2,000 solar installations, reporting a 30% reduction in operating costs alongside a 65% decrease in emissions.

What to watch

Ethio Telecom is also exploring a strategic partnership with Italian firm Ascot Energy, focused on integrating additional green energy solutions into its network as 4G and 5G rollout accelerates and data centre capacity expands. The pace of new solar site commissioning - 215 in a single financial year - suggests the operator is treating energy security as a prerequisite for network growth, not an afterthought. Whether the cumulative solar fleet can keep pace with load growth from data services will be the metric worth tracking in next year's performance report.