Source- Tech 24

Telecel Group CEO CEO Moh Damush has confirmed Telecel Ghana will absorb the financially challenged AT Ghana, a move expected to reshape Ghana’s mobile landscape into a duopoly.

This decision comes nearly a month after the government mandated an emergency national-roaming agreement to keep AT Ghana’s 3.2 million customers connected on Telecel, following a shutdown of part of its cell sites by leading tower company American Tower Corporation (ATC) Ghana, due to AT’s huge and long-standing legacy debt.

Damush announced in a recent interview with Bloomberg, that all AT subscribers will be migrated to Telecel’s network by the first quarter of 2026, adding that, to manage the increased traffic, the company plans to invest “well above US$50 million” in upgrading its network infrastructure, including radios and fiber backhaul.

In fact, Telecel Group made a post on their website to reaffirm this, but later took down the post.

The merger/absorption is expected to create a competitor to the market leader, MTN Ghana. If completed, Telecel’s subscriber base is expected to increase from 7.5 million to approximately 11 million million, thereby boosting its market share 27%. This will leave market leader MTN Ghana with the remaining 73% share from its 30 million plus subscribers, according to recent figures from the National Communications Authority.

As indicated earlier, the takeover became unavoidable after ATC Ghana began deactivating AT’s cell sites on September 1st over roughly US$150 million in unpaid bills. AT Ghana’s total liabilities have since risen to US$289 million, with losses exceeding US$10 million in the first eight months of 2025 alone, all of which have been covered by the state.

To prevent a sudden country-wide service blackout, the Ministry of Communications swiftly ordered Telecel to provide national roaming for AT customers and appointed KPMG to audit AT’s finances. The firm has until early November to propose a long-term solution.

Government officials are already signalling their preference for folding the state-owned AT into Telecel, in which Ghana also holds a 30% stake. The plan involves swapping the government’s AT equity for additional shares in Telecel. However, KPMG has not yet set a valuation, and a significant capital shortfall of US$200–250 million must be resolved before the merged entity can be presented to regulators.

While Telecel’s new investors, Electrum Group and Vodacom, have not yet specified the amount of fresh capital they will inject, the ministry anticipates that the merger could unlock up to US$600 million in sector-wide investment over the next four years. This funding would support 5G trials, expand rural network coverage, and modernize the mobile money platform.

According to the sector minister, Samuel Nartey George, all 300 of AT’s employees have been guaranteed job retention and retraining. For consumers, the deal promises immediate service continuity and the potential for more competitive pricing in the future as Telecel gains access to more spectrum and tower capacity.

Several regulatory hurdles remain. The National Communications Authority must first waive its 55 MHz spectrum cap to allow Telecel to acquire AT’s frequency blocks. The regulator also needs to decide whether to transfer AT’s license via an administrative fee or an open auction—a path strongly advocated for by MTN, which argues a direct handover would create an unfair advantage.

If the deal secures funding and regulatory approval, Ghana’s mobile market will transition from a quasi-monopoly to a functional duopoly. If it fails, the problem of three million disconnected subscribers and nearly US$300 million in debt will fall squarely back on the taxpayer when KPMG submits its final report next month.

Meanwhile, the takeover of AT by Telecel, means government is setting aside the US$150 million offer by Canadian investor, Rektron Group for 60% stake in AT Ghana, which has already received favourable comments from KPMG in its recommendations to government.

Rektron Group is still interested in pursuing the deal. Since the announcement of the AT-Telecel arrangement, Rektron has written officially to the Communications Minister and copied the Chief of Staff, indicating their interest in AT Ghana and their readiness backed by the necessary funding and expertise to turn the company into a profitability entity.

At this stage, the matter is still being deliberated in cabinet before a final decision will be announced as whether the absorption of AT by Telecel still stands or Rektron will come on board and acquire the majority stake in AT.

Take note that an AT-Telecel merger also means, Telecel will lose part of its 70% majority stake. The issue of Telecel’s own huge indebtedness to creditors and vendors, plus the need for a major upgrade on its network still remain unresolved.