Telenor Pakistan, PTCL Ufone deal extended till September 2025

ISLAMABAD (Zubair Kasuri): The biggest deal in Pakistan’s telecom sector, the acquisition of Telenor Pakistan by Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) and its subsidiary Ufone, is still stuck in the throes of regulatory approvals.

The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has not yet issued formal approval for this major deal.

According to the latest developments, the agreement between PTCL Ufone and Telenor to acquire Telenor Pakistan was initially scheduled to expire in June 2025. However, sources have confirmed that the term of the agreement has been extended till September 30, 2025 at the request of PTCL Ufone.

This expansion has given PTCL Ufone more time to obtain the required regulatory approvals from the CCP, which are still pending.

Subscriber Count and Market Position

As per the latest available figures from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Telenor Pakistan has around 44.14 million subscribers, while Ufone has over 24.3 million subscribers.

After this acquisition, the combined entity of PTCL/Ufone and Telenor will become one of the largest telecom operators in Pakistan, which could have a profound impact on the competitive landscape in the market. It is to be noted that the final subscriber count for September 2025 will be available only after this date.

Impact of Delay in Approval

Sources within say that Telenor management is fully prepared to sell Telenor Pakistan, but they are waiting for a “green signal” from the Pakistani government. Sources responsible for the management further said that due to the delay of more than a year, Telenor Pakistan has lost billions of rupees, and its subscriber base is also declining rapidly.

The extraordinary delay in the sale and purchase process has put the network expansion and improvement plans of both Telenor and Ufone on hold for more than a year, which has severely affected the networks of both companies.

Impact on consumers and the market

A major result of this situation is that the long delay in the sale and purchase process of both companies has increased the business of other mobile phone companies (Jazz and Zong).

Consumers are shifting towards them in search of better services and coverage. However, overall mobile phone users have faced difficulties as network improvements are stalled and access to new technologies (such as 5G) is delayed.

Experts say that a long delay in such a major deal has a negative impact not only on the financial stability of the companies but also on the overall development of the telecom sector in the country. This situation shows that the early completion of this agreement is of utmost importance for both the companies, consumers, and the telecom industry of Pakistan.