Norwegian telco Telenor has confirmed that its Indian mobile operator Uninor, a JV in which it holds a majority stake, has began the process of raising Rs80bn (US$1.67bn) through a rights issue and debt offering.
Telenor currently owns 67.25% of shares…
Norwegian telco Telenor has confirmed that its Indian mobile operator Uninor, a JV in which it holds a majority stake, has began the process of raising Rs80bn (US$1.67bn) through a rights issue and debt offering.
Telenor currently owns 67.25% of shares in Uninor, while the rest is held by Indian real estate company Unitech.
“The debt and rights issue is a component in Uninor and does not divert from what we have previously communicated,” a spokesman said.
According to a news report on the Indiamart website earlier in September, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ruled earlier in September that Uninor can go ahead with its proposed rights issue. This process had reportedly been brought to a halt after Unitech had challenged it in the district court of Gurgaon.
The Times of India claimed in an article published yesterday that Telenor could bring in a second Indian investor if Unitech did not participate in the rights issue.
The Telenor spokesman would not comment on whether or not a second investor could be brought in.
But he dismissed the report that BNP Paribas had been asked by Unitech Wireless, the holding company for Uninor, to assess the fundraising options. He would not comment on which banks they were working with.
Unitech was not immediately available for comment.
Uninor currently provides mobile services in 13 of India’s 22 telecoms circles, although it has mobile licences for all the circles.
It made an operating loss of NKr2.45bn (US$432m) in the first half of 2011, compared to a loss of NKr2.44bn (US$429m) for the same period in 2010.
