Qtel said it had “made a major step forward in its ongoing expansion strategy”, receiving approvals that will see it increasing its stake in Kuwait-based operator Wataniya Telecom to 92.1 percent.

The company is set to pay US$1.8 billion for the additional shares.

Qtel previously owned 52.5 percent of the Kuwait business, before making a tender for the 47.5 percent it did not own.

It was taken up on its offer by the owners of 39.61 percent of Wataniya, leaving 7.9 percent in the hands of third-parties.

In a statement, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Thani, chairman of Qtel (pictured), said: “We respect the decision of those Wataniya Telecom shareholders who decided not to accept the offer and look forward to their continuing support as we enter into a new period of investment across all Wataniya Telecom Kuwait’s main markets”.

In addition to its business in Kuwait, Wataniya Telecom has stakes in businesses in the Maldives (100 percent), Palestine (48.5 percent), Algeria (71 percent), Saudi Arabia (100 percent) and Tunisia (75 percent).

In 2007, Qtel paid US$3.8 billion for a 51 percent stake in Wataniya, stating that this investment has “proven to be a successful one for Qtel and for its stakeholders”.

According to Qtel, in 2011 Wataniya posted a net profit of US$1.3 billion on revenue of US$2.62 billion.

However, Bloomberg noted that Wataniya recently posted a drop in profit for Q2, missing analyst expectations.

Qtel is also increasing its stake in Iraqi operator Asiacell, in a deal valued at around US$1.5 billion.