MTN South Africa has reached an agreement with South African network provider Telkom under which it will take over the deployment and operation of Telkom’s radio access network (RAN), and the two companies will be able to roam over each other’s networks, TechCentral reports.

Telkom CEO Sipho Maseko said in a statement that the deal is a means to outsource the operation of Telkom’s radio access network for scale and efficiency while “retaining and enhancing their competitive differentiation and flexibility”. It is said to be in line with the company’s plans to reduce risks from its loss-making mobile business, allowing the operator to expand mobile coverage and to reduce operating costs and capital expenditure significantly.

The deal is subject to the conclusion of various binding commercial agreements.