Qatar's Power International Holding is still paying off its deal to buy Mobile Telecom-Service, the operator behind the Tele2 and Altel brands, and the amount owed to the Kazakh side remains substantial — about $375 million, according to the website infohub.kz.
It has emerged that in January 2026 the Samruk-Kazyna group received 12.9 billion tenge from Qatar's Power International Holding as the second installment in the sale of Mobile Telecom-Service. Under the terms of the agreement, the Qatari side still has to pay roughly $375 million over the next two years.
Samruk-Kazyna said it received another installment in the first six months of 2026 under the agreement to sell Mobile Telecom-Service (MTS), which provides communications services under the Tele2 and Altel brands. The payment totaled 12.9 billion tenge. Kazakhtelecom, which previously owned MTS, reports a similar figure in dollar terms — $25.4 million, received in January.
The deal closed on January 14, 2025, when an agreement was signed with the Qatari company PIH Communication, part of the Power International Holding group, to transfer a 100% stake in MTS for $1.1 billion. That sum was effectively split into two parts: a $700 million prepayment, which gave PIH control of Tele2 and Altel, and a contingent consideration payable over three years.
The consideration amounted to $400 million (the equivalent of 370 billion tenge at the date of the contract). Of that sum, the Qataris have so far transferred only one installment a year after the prepayment — the same $25.4 million. Whether further payments under the contract will be made this year is unknown. As a result, under the agreement PIH still owes $375 million.
Samruk-Kazyna notes, however, that the consideration measured at fair value — that is, the entire sum the Qatari side was to pay after the prepayment — is $349 million, not $400 million. Kazakhtelecom, for its part, values the remaining debt at fair value at $344 million.
Samruk-Kazyna owns 91.3% of Kazakhtelecom's shares. The PIH holding is owned in equal parts by Qatari businessmen Mutaz Al-Khayat and Ramez Al-Khayat. Through Lesha Bank, they also acquired Bereke Bank.
It was reported earlier that mobile operators Kcell and Tele2 agreed in 2022 to jointly build and share base stations. Amid disagreements that arose, they are seeking to recover billions of tenge in penalties from each other.