After months of searching, Norwegian firm Telenor has finally found a new partner for its telecom operations in India. Three independent sources said, one of the family members of the Sun Pharma promoter group is picking up a 26% stake in a new JV with Telenor, in a personal capacity.
The promoter family of Sun Pharma is led by Dilip Shanghvi although at this point the identity of the individual who will partner Telenor is not known. However, it may not eventually be Dilip Shanghvi himself but one of his family members.
The formal announcement is expected later today. The exact valuation of the JV and other operational details are also expected to be announced later today.
When contacted, a Sun Pharma spokesperson denied the development saying neither Mr Shangvi or Sun Pharma is looking at entering telecom.
Telenor's head of Asia operations Sigve Brekke was unreachable for comments despite repeated attempts on his mobile phone. Company spokesperson
Citigroup has been advising Telenor to identify its new partner. A Citi spokesperson declined to comment.
Earlier in the month, Telenor amicably settled its long standing dispute with erstwhile partner Unitech. After an 18 month long feud, both partners agreed to transfer the assets and 45 million customers of their mobile phone joint venture to a new company that will be owned by the Norwegian telco.
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The promoter family of Sun Pharma is led by Dilip Shanghvi although at this point the identity of the individual who will partner Telenor is not known. However, it may not eventually be Dilip Shanghvi himself but one of his family members.
The formal announcement is expected later today. The exact valuation of the JV and other operational details are also expected to be announced later today.
When contacted, a Sun Pharma spokesperson denied the development saying neither Mr Shangvi or Sun Pharma is looking at entering telecom.
Telenor's head of Asia operations Sigve Brekke was unreachable for comments despite repeated attempts on his mobile phone. Company spokesperson
Citigroup has been advising Telenor to identify its new partner. A Citi spokesperson declined to comment.
Earlier in the month, Telenor amicably settled its long standing dispute with erstwhile partner Unitech. After an 18 month long feud, both partners agreed to transfer the assets and 45 million customers of their mobile phone joint venture to a new company that will be owned by the Norwegian telco.
Read More . . . . .