Telecommunications operators in Nigeria are waxing worriedly over the increasing activities of vandals and thieves who are cutting fiber optic cable, stealing generators and batteries.
According to the operators, the activities of the vandals and thieves have led to degrading quality of service (QoS)- prolonged network downtimes, high rates of dropped calls, and slow internet speeds.
It also directly lead to poor voice quality, interrupted data services, and failures in critical, time-sensitive applications like banking.
According to figures by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the losses run into billions of naira as more than 650 power-related assets were stolen in 2025.
These include; stolen generators, batteries, and other power equipment essential to the operation of base stations across the country, where unreliable electricity supply makes off-grid power systems central to network stability.
Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) said that the scale of theft has shifted the challenge from operational disruption to what it described as an existential threat to the sector.
Tony Emoekpere, president, ATCON, told Punch that operators are now responding largely in a defensive mode, combining physical security upgrades with technological monitoring and redesigning how sites are powered and secured.
“Operators are responding, but largely in a defensive mode,” he said.
“What you’re seeing now is a combination of increased physical security, technology deployment, and changes to how sites are designed and powered.”
Measures include increased deployment of site security guards, collaboration with local vigilante groups, reinforced base station enclosures, and wider use of remote monitoring systems that allow operators to detect tampering in real time.
Operators are also shifting away from easily removable components, such as standalone batteries, toward more integrated and hybrid power systems.
However, ATCON said even solar and hybrid infrastructure is now being targeted by thieves.
“We are spending more to protect infrastructure than we should, and that is not sustainable,” Emoekpere said.
The impact of the theft is already being felt across Nigeria’s telecom network, with operators reporting site shutdowns that translate directly into service deterioration.
“When you lose generators and batteries at that scale, what it means in practical terms is that sites go down,” Emoekpere said.
“And when sites go down, you immediately see increased call drops, poorer voice quality, and slower or completely unavailable data services.”
ATCON said subscribers are already bearing the brunt of the disruption, even if they are unaware of its underlying cause.
The association warned that the financial impact runs into billions of naira annually, with operators currently absorbing much of the cost.
However, it said the losses are increasingly feeding into broader industry economics.
“These losses run into billions of naira annually. While operators are absorbing a lot of it for now, it inevitably feeds into the overall cost structure of the industry,” Emoekpere said.
