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HYDERABAD: Telecom operator Uninor will draw up state-wise business development plans before the 2G auctions for the 122 licences that were cancelled in February this year. This move comes after the company announced its decision to prioritise investments and expansion in nine circles after pulling out of four circles, mostly in South India.
Uninor, a joint venture between Norwegian telecom operator Telenor and Indian real-estate firm Unitech, wants to sever ties with its Unitech, find a new partner and form a new company before the 2G auction kicks off to bid for the licences .
The Norwegian firm wants to increase its stake in the new firm to 76% from the existing 67.5%. "We have finalised a fistful of Indian business houses who are not associated with the telecom business and who are acceptable with owning 24% in the new firm (sic)," Uninor managing director Sigve Brekke said. He said that Telenor will finalise its partner shortly.
The auction of the cancelled licences, which is slated for by the end of this month, could be postponed further after the Centre moved the Supreme Court seeking a three-month extension of the deadline. It pleaded for more time on the grounds that it would give bidders sufficient time to participate effectively, and thus achieve the objective of garnering actual market price.
Uninor decided to scale down operations in four circles last month to sharpen its focus on the other nine circles it operates in. In the existing circles, the company hopes to add one million customers every month by increasing the number of retailers and exclusive Uninor outlets. Uninor currently has a total customer base of 45 million customers all over India.
"We have already made our capex in the new sites where we want to improve our performance. Our plan is to enter the auctions with an even stronger presence in the nine circles and meet aggressive targets in these circles," Brekke said.
Telenor ASA narrowed down operating losses of its Indian operations to 619 million Norwegian krone ( 569 crore) in the April-June quarter of this year. The company's Indian unit Uninor registered an operating loss of 619 million Norwegian krone against that of 1.2 billion Norwegian krone in the same period last year, Telenor said in a statement. Uninor witnessed 48.2% jump in revenues to 1.03 billion Norwegian krone in the quarter under review, it said.
Uninor currently gets 90% of its revenues from voice and 10% of its revenues from data. The average revenue per user (arpu) is 100.
Source
Uninor, a joint venture between Norwegian telecom operator Telenor and Indian real-estate firm Unitech, wants to sever ties with its Unitech, find a new partner and form a new company before the 2G auction kicks off to bid for the licences .
The Norwegian firm wants to increase its stake in the new firm to 76% from the existing 67.5%. "We have finalised a fistful of Indian business houses who are not associated with the telecom business and who are acceptable with owning 24% in the new firm (sic)," Uninor managing director Sigve Brekke said. He said that Telenor will finalise its partner shortly.
The auction of the cancelled licences, which is slated for by the end of this month, could be postponed further after the Centre moved the Supreme Court seeking a three-month extension of the deadline. It pleaded for more time on the grounds that it would give bidders sufficient time to participate effectively, and thus achieve the objective of garnering actual market price.
Uninor decided to scale down operations in four circles last month to sharpen its focus on the other nine circles it operates in. In the existing circles, the company hopes to add one million customers every month by increasing the number of retailers and exclusive Uninor outlets. Uninor currently has a total customer base of 45 million customers all over India.
"We have already made our capex in the new sites where we want to improve our performance. Our plan is to enter the auctions with an even stronger presence in the nine circles and meet aggressive targets in these circles," Brekke said.
Telenor ASA narrowed down operating losses of its Indian operations to 619 million Norwegian krone ( 569 crore) in the April-June quarter of this year. The company's Indian unit Uninor registered an operating loss of 619 million Norwegian krone against that of 1.2 billion Norwegian krone in the same period last year, Telenor said in a statement. Uninor witnessed 48.2% jump in revenues to 1.03 billion Norwegian krone in the quarter under review, it said.
Uninor currently gets 90% of its revenues from voice and 10% of its revenues from data. The average revenue per user (arpu) is 100.
Source