KARACHI: The Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) on Thursday denied media reports suggesting United Arab Emirates (UAE) telecom giant Etisalat was considering exiting the Pakistani market, saying there had been “no discussion” on such a move.
The clarification came after a report in Pakistan’s English-language newspaper Dawn said that Etisalat was in the early stages of reviewing its exposure to the country’s telecom sector. The review was said to be part of a broader portfolio optimization exercise that could potentially result in its exit from Pakistan.
Etisalat International Pakistan took over management control of PTCL in Apr. 2006 as part of a $2.6 billion agreement to acquire a 26 percent stake in the company.
“We are going to issue a statement on this. There is no such thing,” PTCL Chief Executive Officer Hatem Bamatraf said during a webinar, in response to a question from Arab News about Etisalat mulling an exit from the country.
He said it was a question for the shareholders, not for PTCL, but said it was clear to him there was no such conversation happening at Etisalat, which he said was PTCL’s managing entity.
“In fact, we are in close coordination about the strategy, the budget, the business plan, the performance of the company, etc,” he continued. “We are not seeing any change of behavior or there was no such kind of discussion about these things.”
In January, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar met with the top Etisalat official to hold talks over its stake in PTCL and other investment prospects.
The meeting took place against the backdrop of a long-running dispute over the privatization of PTCL.
The UAE-based telecom group has withheld a final payment of approximately $800 million related to its 2005 acquisition of a 26 percent stake in PTCL, citing delays in the transfer of properties included in the deal.
This position is, however, disputed by Pakistan.
Pakistan and the UAE maintain close political and economic ties, with Abu Dhabi having provided critical financial support to Islamabad in recent years through deposits, loans and investment commitments.
Earlier this month, Pakistan repaid $3.5 billion to the UAE as part of its external debt obligations. The amount had been disbursed in three phases during the late 1990s, 2018, and 2023. Pakistan was scheduled to repay the full $3.5 billion by the end of this month.
