Helios Towers PLC on Thursday said revenue rose by a quarter as the company aims to deliver a dividend in the medium term.

The Africa-focused mobile phone tower infrastructure company reported 2022 revenue was $560.7 million, up 25% from $449.1 million a year ago, driven by strong organic revenue growth of 14% due to tenancy growth and the company’s acquisition of four tower portfolios in new markets in 2021 and 2022.

Pretax loss was $162.5 million, widening from a loss of $119.4 million in 2021. Helios said the increase in pretax loss was a result of a $54.1 million increase in non-cash expenses related to bond and foreign exchange movements on euro and dollar denominated company borrowings.

The company did not declare a dividend, but said it expects to reach ‘sufficient scale that both [its] growth ambitions and a potential dividend can be achieved in tandem’.

Looking ahead, the Helios said that it is primed for growth, adding that it looks forward to ‘capturing the exceptional growth opportunity that is unique to Africa and the Middle East’.

Chief Executive Officer Tom Greenwood said: ‘We have delivered a number of successes despite challenging global macro volatility: stellar operational delivery for our customers, record tenancy additions, smooth acquisition integration and strong financial performance.

‘All nine of our markets feature substantial mobile growth over the coming years, driven by low mobile penetration today, huge population growth and the demand for higher-quality and ubiquitous mobile coverage. We have built an exciting platform to drive sustainable value creation and organic growth across all our markets in 2023 and beyond, capturing the compelling growth opportunity across the region.’

Helios Towers shares rose 6.2% to 111.09 pence each in London on Thursday morning.

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