MTN is preparing to take a significant impairment on its investment in Iranian telecoms company Irancell as worsening geopolitical and economic conditions in the country make the asset increasingly difficult to realise.

The telecommunications group announced on August 11, 2026, that the impairment on its 49% stake in Irancell will affect its half-year financial results.

MTN expects the write-down to contribute to a decline of between 20% and 30% in reported earnings per share. However, the company's underlying business performance tells a different story.

Adjusted headline earnings per share, which exclude the impact of certain exceptional items, are expected to increase by between 18% and 23%.

The difference highlights the impact of MTN's investment in Iran, where the company remains exposed to an asset that continues to generate earnings but has become increasingly difficult to access or sell.

MTN is expected to release its full interim financial results on August 24, 2026.

An asset that still makes money but cannot move

The impairment does not necessarily mean that Irancell has stopped operating or generating profits.

MTN has been unable to extract dividends or capital from its Iranian investment since May 2018, following the reimposition of US sanctions on Iran.

The restrictions have limited MTN's ability to move money out of the country, effectively leaving the telecoms group with an investment that generates value on paper but cannot easily provide cash to the parent company.

MTN has previously described the investment as a frozen asset.

Despite these restrictions, Irancell has continued to operate. MTN said its share of the company's earnings for 2025 was approximately $136 million.

However, because those earnings cannot easily be repatriated, their value to MTN has become increasingly uncertain.

The latest impairment therefore represents an accounting recognition that the group's stake in Irancell may now be more difficult to recover or sell.

Iran still matters to MTN's numbers

Although MTN operates across several markets, its Iranian investment remains significant enough to affect the group's overall financial performance.

Before the latest escalation in the conflict, Iran represented around 4% of MTN's net assets and approximately 7% of its adjusted headline earnings.

That means Irancell is not large enough to determine the future of the entire MTN Group, but its performance and valuation can still influence the company's reported results.

The impairment also comes at a difficult time for MTN, which has been trying to exit its investment in Iran for several years.

The company has previously indicated that it has wanted to dispose of its Irancell stake since 2020.

However, sanctions and restrictions on financial transactions have made finding a buyer and transferring the proceeds outside Iran increasingly challenging.

Leadership changes add to the uncertainty

The situation surrounding Irancell reportedly became more complicated in January 2026.

Iranian authorities removed Irancell's CEO, Alireza Rafiei, following reports that he delayed complying with a government-ordered communications shutdown during a period of unrest.

The development added a new layer of political uncertainty to MTN's investment.

By March, MTN had withdrawn its three secondees from Iran as tensions and conflict involving Iran, Israel and the United States intensified.

MTN has also repeatedly maintained that it does not control Irancell's day-to-day operations.

The latest developments have further increased the geopolitical, operational and reputational risks surrounding an investment the company has struggled to exit.

A bigger geopolitical problem

The Irancell situation shows how geopolitical events can affect a company's financial results even when its underlying business continues to generate revenue.

For MTN, the problem is not simply whether Irancell is profitable.

The more significant challenge is whether the company can realise any value from its 49% stake.

As sanctions, conflict and political uncertainty continue to affect Iran, the gap between the value of the business on paper and the value MTN can actually access may continue to widen.

The upcoming impairment is expected to reflect that reality.

While MTN's core operations are projected to deliver stronger underlying earnings, the Irancell write-down demonstrates how a single difficult-to-exit investment can still weigh heavily on reported financial performance.

For now, MTN remains tied to an asset that continues to generate profits but has become increasingly difficult to convert into cash, sell or fully control.