Qatar’s Ooredoo Group announced that it is carving out a new independent company, Ooredoo Fibre Networks (OFN), that will focus on managing and scaling Ooredoo’s international connectivity and subsea cable infrastructure.
OFN will serve as the group’s specialised vehicle to execute strategic investments in subsea cables and high-capacity terrestrial transport fibre, which Ooredoo describes as “a substantial digital infrastructure opportunity offering attractive long-term returns.”
OFN will bundle Ooredoo’s expanding portfolio of international connectivity assets and projects under a dedicated platform, strengthening its ability to capture rising demand for resilient, high-performance data routes driven by hyperscalers, cloud providers, and AI platforms.
Ooredoo has appointed Khalid Hassan Al-Hamadi as CEO of OFN, effective February 15. Al-Hamadi previously served as MD and CEO of Ooredoo Maldives since February 2022, following a long career within Ooredoo Qatar where he held senior leadership roles across consumer sales and strategic planning.
“International connectivity and subsea infrastructure are already among the most strategic digital assets in the world, and demand is accelerating with AI, cloud, and hyperscale growth,” said Ooredoo Group CEO Aziz Aluthman Fakhroo in a statement. “With the formation of OFN, and with Khalid Hassan Al-Hamadi at the helm, we are creating a focused platform to scale our investments in fibre and submarine cables, deliver attractive long-term returns, and cement Ooredoo’s position as a key data gateway between Asia, the Gulf, and Europe.”
Ooredoo is currently building what it claims is one of the largest subsea cable and transport fibre networks in the GCC, positioning the Group as a strategic gateway for digital traffic between Europe and Asia.
That includes the Fibre in Gulf (FIG) subsea cable system – currently under development with Alcatel Submarine Networks and spanning approximately 1,900 kilometres – alongside additional subsea and terrestrial connectivity investments across the region.
“We have set a clear ambition to grow our international infrastructure and subsea cable business from 3% to 12% of group revenues over time, reflecting the scale of the opportunity in global data and AI traffic flows,” Aziz added.
The carve-out of OFN is expected to be completed by 2027.
It also marks the latest move by Ooredoo to spin off its business units following the carve-out of its regional data centre operations last year. The resulting entity, Syntys, currently operates active data centres in Qatar, Tunisia, Kuwait, Oman and Iraq.
