MTN Ghana has been awarded all of the 3 GHz spectrum in Ghana’s 5G licensing round, the band the regulator offered for high-capacity urban data, along with the most 700 MHz spectrum any single operator was allowed to take. Together, the awards cost US$202 million.
MTN Group told shareholders on 2 October 2026 that its Ghanaian subsidiary, Scancom, had received a notice of award from the National Communications Authority (NCA). It covers 3 lots of 50 MHz in the 3 GHz band (150 MHz total) for US$101.1 million, and 2 lots in the 700 MHz band (2 x 20 MHz) for US$100.9 million. The licences run for 15 years.
The contested band
The 3 GHz band was the only one in the round where demand exceeded supply. When bids were opened on 11 September 2026, the NCA reported that MTN and Telecel Ghana had applied for 4 lots between them, against 3 available.
Under the round’s rules, oversubscribed lots go to a second round of sealed bids and are awarded in descending order of price. MTN’s notice covers all 3 lots. The NCA has not yet published the final outcome for the band.
MTN bid as the only operator the NCA designates as having significant market power, which carried a 40% premium on the reserve price in both bands. That set its minimum at US$33.6 million per 3 GHz lot, against US$24 million for other applicants. MTN’s fee works out at about US$33.7 million per lot.
No rival at 700 MHz
In the 700 MHz band, which the NCA describes as suited to wide-area and rural coverage, MTN was the only qualified applicant. It applied for 2 of the 3 lots, the maximum one applicant could hold, and the NCA concluded the band on 11 September 2026.
MTN’s fee is US$100,000 above its premium-adjusted reserve of US$50.4 million per lot. The third lot drew no applications.
What comes with it
The licence terms oblige an operator with significant market power to offer national roaming to every other licensed mobile operator in Ghana, at non-discriminatory prices set at cost and approved by the NCA, or at the regulated tariff. MTN must file a reference offer within 90 days of the licence taking effect, and roaming must be available within 6 months.
MTN says it will add the spectrum to its existing holdings to expand capacity, grow 5G mobility and connect homes to broadband.
The round followed the NCA’s decision in July to end Next-Gen InfraCo’s monopoly on wholesale 5G, after the shared network had built 49 of a planned 4,400 sites, and its call for applications a day later. Four companies applied. Telecel Ghana and Goal Telecommunications qualified alongside MTN; Infrava did not.
Telecel Ghana said on 17 September 2026 that the NCA had awarded it 3 lots in the 2.3 GHz band, all those it applied for, a total of 60 MHz. “This award is an important step in our preparations for the rollout of 5G,” said Komla Buami, its director of external affairs.
Telecel’s statement did not mention the 3 GHz band or disclose a fee. Goal Telecommunications, which applied for 1 lot in the 2.3 GHz band, has not announced an outcome, and the NCA has not yet published final results for either band.
Correction, 7 October 2026: This article originally stated that the outcome in the 2.3 GHz band was still to be announced. Telecel Ghana said on 17 September 2026 that the NCA had awarded it 3 lots in the band.
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