Norwegian telecom major Telenor eyes India

Mumbai: Norwegian telecom group Telenor is likely to enter the Indian market as the company shifts focus to the larger Asian market in search of growth.

Telenor, which has mobile operations in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Thailand and Malaysia, said it was open to possible entry into India's growing mobile market.

India has an added attraction as it is a fast-growing market with huge potential unlike many of its markets that have already matured.

''We have been present in Asia for more than a decade. As a long-term and industrial player, we have all ambitions of developing and increasing our presence in this region,'' Telenor Asia Ltd communications director Esben Tuman said. ''As part of this, we naturally discuss and consider different opportunities," he added.

Tuman said he won't comment on rumours and speculations, but added it was part of the company's strategy to constantly keep its eyes and ears open.

A team from Telenor was recently in India to assess such possibilities, and some media reports had linked Telenor to BPL group company Loop Telecom, which has a pan-India GSM licence.

Reports said Telenor and Kuwait-based Zain Telecom have started negotiations with Mumbai-based Loop Telecom. It was unclear whether the two players were considering a majority stake.

Loop, fully owned by the Essar Group firm BPL Mobile, operates GSM services in Mumbai and is one of seven operators with a licence for pan-Indian mobile operations.

With a 297 million wireless subscriber base, India still offers tremendous scope for growth even as growth and revenues dry up in matured markets.

Telenor, the world's seventh largest telecom company, added 30 million new subscribers last year and has a current subscriber base of over 143 million. An entry into India would make the $25 billion Telenor the second biggest non-Asian operator in Asia after Vodafone.

Telenor had plans to enter Vietnam but was beaten in their bid by Russian phone group Vimpelcom, which signed a deal this year. Telenor has a strategic stake in Vimpelcom.

Telenor Venture VII AS, a subsidiary of Telenor ASA, meanwhile, announced the acquisition of shares in Wireless Matrix Corporation. 

The company bought a total of 16,967,286 common shares of Wireless Matrix Corporation, representing 20.54 per cent of the issued and outstanding common shares of the company, in a private transaction.

The company said it has no plans to acquire ownership or control over additional securities of Wireless Matrix Corporation.