Indian telecom tower companies are well placed to tap in on new opportunities that represent a revenue potential of INR 215 billion-INR 310 billion in 2023.

The report said technologies such as 5G and IoT require formidable network performance, which has triggered the need for a diverse infrastructure mix.

Data demand is expected to witness 5x increase during 2018-24. This data growth will fuel the demand for new infrastructure and services.

Fibre presents significant potential as the overall fiber deployment in the country is expected to increase at a CAGR of 13.6 percent, from 1.5 million cable kilometers in 2018, to 2.8 million cable kilometers in 2023.

Wireless, FTTx and common infrastructure would be the major contributors to fiber demand. The fiber growth is expected to see a fillip 2020 onward, with expected launch of 5G in 2023, said the report.

Small cells are another booming segment and tower companies are well placed to tap it. The expected rollout of 5G services in 2023 is expected to contribute to large number of small cell deployments to support bandwidth requirement for use cases. Outdoor small cell deployments in India expected to reach ~250,000 by 2023.

Telecom infrastructure companies can also explore venturing into data centres, in addition to the edge computing.

Infrastructure companies have already started smart city projects to enhance revenue. Smart cities are offering access to street furniture for future telecom infrastructure. Other segments such as IoT, Wi-Fi, power management among others are likely to become mainstream as the market matures.

“With the high momentum from tower companies, and government’s push on infrastructure growth, the future is promising for the telecom infrastructure sector,” Prashant Singhal, Emerging Markets TMT Leader, EY, said.

“Infrastructure providers are in strong position to tap on the new opportunities such as fibre, small cells, Wi-Fi and smart cities. Infracos have the potential to tap 35 percent-40 percent of the overall addressable market of these new revenue segments,” Bharat Bhargava, telecommunications advisory leader – Performance Improvement, EY said.