The South Korean firm operates in Rwanda as KT Rwanda Networks (KTRN), a joint venture with Rwandan government
KIGALI – Rwanda has filed a $386 million counterclaim against KT Corporation, a publicly listed South Korean telecommunications company, escalating a dispute over a failed 4G network project that has moved to international arbitration.
The counterclaim was filed on October 20, 2026, with the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA). The claimants are the Government of Rwanda, the Rwanda Development Board, the Rwanda Social Security Board, and AGDF Corporate Trust, also known as the Agaciro Development Fund.
KT disclosed the filing in a regulatory notice on October 23. The company said it would challenge the basis of Rwanda’s calculations, arguing that the damages figure rests on assumptions made by the Rwandan side.
To put into context the significance of the amount Rwanda is seeking, the $386 million claim, equivalent to about Rwf 574 billion, is more than 1.4 times the country’s entire Rwf 355.64 billion agriculture and livestock budget for 2026/27.
It also represents about 7.3% of the Rwf 7.796 trillion national budget for the same fiscal year. Although the claim has yet to be decided through arbitration, the comparison illustrates the scale of the financial stakes in Rwanda’s dispute with the South Korean telecommunications firm.
How the dispute began
The dispute centres on KT Rwanda Networks (KTRN), a joint venture established in 2013 to build and operate Rwanda’s 4G LTE broadband infrastructure.
KT owns 51% of the company, while the Rwandan government holds the remaining 49%.
Under the arrangement, KT financed the construction of the network. Rwanda contributed fibre-optic infrastructure, spectrum access and a wholesale network operating licence.
The agreement also granted KTRN a 25-year exclusivity arrangement in wholesale 4G services.
KT was originally a state-run telecommunications monopoly but was fully privatised in 2002. It is now a publicly listed company whose shares are held by institutional and individual investors.
The dispute is therefore between the Rwandan state and a commercial investor, rather than between two governments.
Who owns KT?
KT has no single shareholder holding a majority stake.
Its ownership has changed over time. The National Pension Service (NPS), South Korea’s state-backed pension fund, was KT’s largest shareholder for many years.
That changed in April 2024, when Hyundai Motor Company and its affiliate Hyundai Mobis became the largest shareholder group, with a combined stake of 7.89%. The change followed the NPS reducing its holding from 8.53% to 7.51%.
KT’s 2025 annual report provides a more recent snapshot. As of December 31, 2025, the NPS held 7.09% of the company, while Hyundai Motor owned 4.86% and Hyundai Mobis 3.21%. Together, the two Hyundai companies held 8.07%.
The figures illustrate the difference between the largest individual shareholder and a group of affiliated shareholders.
Because KT operates critical telecommunications infrastructure, changes in its largest shareholder are subject to review under South Korean telecommunications law. The Ministry of Science and ICT has a role in assessing such changes.
Why the deal unravelled
In October 2022, Rwanda announced plans to end KTRN’s exclusive rights.
In 2023, the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority formally ended exclusivity for 4G and newer technologies. The regulator said the original licensing arrangement no longer matched the country’s broadband policy and telecommunications framework.
The change allowed other operators to build their own 4G networks, opening the market to competition and weakening KTRN’s exclusive position.
The disagreement over the consequences of that policy change has since developed into a contractual dispute.
KT wants $152 million to exit
In March 2026, KT sought to exit the joint venture by exercising a contractual put option. It demanded approximately $152 million, arguing that Rwanda had failed to meet its obligations under the shareholders’ agreement.
A put option allows an investor to require another party to purchase its stake under agreed contractual conditions.
Rwanda rejected KT’s position and brought the dispute to arbitration.
Its counterclaim seeks approximately $386 million in damages, more than twice the amount KT is demanding.
The Rwandan side alleges that KT breached its own contractual obligations and should compensate the claimants.
KT disputes the basis of the counterclaim and says it will defend its position during the arbitration.
Neither claim has been decided.
What happens next?
The arbitration will examine the parties’ obligations under the shareholders’ agreement, the basis for KT’s proposed exit and the merits of Rwanda’s counterclaim.
The outcome could determine whether either side owes compensation and how the financial consequences of the failed arrangement will be distributed.
The amounts claimed are not awards or established liabilities. They remain contested demands pending the proceedings.
