African-owned Telecel challenges European rivals for UK network

Telecel Group, the pan-African telecommunications company co-founded by Lebanese-Ghanaian businessman Moh Damush, is making a bold push into Europe, challenging established European bidders for control of a key part of the United Kingdom’s telecom infrastructure.

The company has submitted a bid worth up to £450 million for TalkTalk’s wholesale business, PXC, a move that could make Telecel one of the few African-owned telecom operators with a significant presence in a mature European market.

The bid places Telecel in direct competition with European investors and management-backed buyers in the auction for PXC, highlighting the company’s ambition to evolve from a regional telecom player into a global infrastructure operator.

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If successful, the acquisition would represent a rare reversal of the traditional investment pattern in telecommunications, where European companies have historically expanded into Africa. Instead, an African-owned operator would be taking control of strategic telecom infrastructure in one of Europe’s most advanced digital markets.

PXC is one of the UK’s leading wholesale telecom providers, supplying broadband and connectivity services to internet service providers and businesses through a nationwide network. Owning the business would immediately give Telecel access to an established customer base and critical infrastructure without the time and cost of building a new network from scratch.

The move also signals a strategic shift for Telecel, whose expansion has largely been focused on African markets.

The group’s biggest acquisition came in 2023 when it completed the purchase of a majority stake in Vodafone Ghana, rebranding the business as Telecel Ghana. Since then, it has continued expanding its footprint across the continent while positioning itself to compete for Ghana’s upcoming 5G spectrum licence.

Industry analysts say acquiring PXC would diversify Telecel’s business beyond emerging markets and provide access to Europe’s advanced wholesale telecom ecosystem, where demand for high-capacity broadband, cloud connectivity and enterprise data services continues to grow.

The proposed deal also reflects growing confidence among African-owned telecom companies to pursue larger international opportunities after years of building experience in highly competitive and underserved markets.

However, Telecel faces significant hurdles.

Besides competing against well-funded European rivals, the company must convince TalkTalk’s lenders that it has the financial strength to complete and integrate a transaction of this size while continuing to fund its African operations.

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Regulatory approvals in the UK are also expected to play a major role because PXC operates critical national communications infrastructure.

For Telecel, the acquisition is about more than entering a new market. It is an opportunity to position itself as a global telecommunications infrastructure company rather than simply an African mobile operator.

If the bid succeeds, it would mark one of the most significant overseas acquisitions ever undertaken by an African-owned telecom company and demonstrate that African operators are increasingly capable of competing for strategic digital assets beyond the continent.

The outcome of the auction is still uncertain, but Telecel’s participation alone signals that African telecom companies are becoming more ambitious, seeking not only to connect Africa but also to play a larger role in the global digital infrastructure industry.