Telenor Rumoured to Be Close to Buying Warid Telecom

­It is being reported that Norway's Telenor is close to purchasing a controlling stake in Pakistan's Warid Telecom for around US$1.3 billion. If completed, the Dhabi Group will retain 7 percent of the company, while other 30 percent will stay with Singtel.

Citing unnamed sources, Pro Pakistani reported that the talks went through in a smooth way, especially when Telenor agreed on paying the value that was pretty acceptable for Dhabi Group. The blog also confirmed that the telecoms regulator, the PTA is aware of the talks and would not be expected to object to them.

The largest operator in the country is Moblink, with just over 28 million customers. Both Telenor and Ufone have just under 20 million customers, while Warid Telecom comes in with just over 17 million. China Mobile's Pakistan subsidiary, Zong is the smallest of the 5 main operators in the country, with just under 6 million customers

China Mobile had previously tried to buy out Warid Telecom but reportedly failed to reach an agreement on the price. China Mobile then turned its attention to Telenor concerning a merger of their respective Pakistani mobile networks, but evidently nothing happened.

Last year, Telenor said that it was likely to invest $2.5 billion more in the country if it gets a 3G license. "We have invested almost $1.8 billion out of our commitment of $2 billion by the end-2007 and would go for a further $2.5 billion depending on the situation if we get a 3G license," Jon Fredrik Baksaas, also the president of Telenor Group, told Dow Jones Newswires last August.

On the web: Mobile World - Pro Pakistani

Posted to the site on 15th November 2009