Power International Holding (PIH), a Qatar-based conglomerate, has signed an agreement in principle (AIP) to acquire Kazakhstan's mobile operator, Mobile Telecom Services (MTS), from incumbent state telco, Kazakhtelecom JSC.
The agreement, signed in Qatar by PIH, Kazakhtelecom, and its stakeholder, Samruk-Kazyna (Kazakhstan's Sovereign Wealth Fund), calls for PIH to purchase a 100% stake in MTS. The final terms of the sale, including the actual transaction amount, are yet to be determined.
Kazakhtelecom purchased 100% of MTS (which operates under the brands Tele2/ALTEL) in 2019, roughly a year after acquiring another mobile operator, Kcell. To address regulatory concerns regarding competition, the telco has run both networks as separate companies.
In July 2023, Kazakhstan's Ministry of Digital Development announced that Kazakhtelecom intended to sell at least one of its mobile units before the end of the year. Last month, the State Commission on the Issues of Modernization of the Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan decided to sell MTS.
According to PIH chairman, Mohammed Moutaz Al-Khayyat, the deal will expand the company's presence in Kazakhstan "due to its promising investment opportunities and advanced business environment.”
Furthermore, PIH CEO, Ramez Al-Khayyat, stated that the acquisition will expand the company's technology offerings by applying “data analytics to customer behavior, network infrastructure performance, digital payments and market trends to introduce new digital products and services.”
