Pakistan State Oil (PSO) wants to buy Telenor’s operations in Pakistan and intends to participate in the first round of bids for the telecom company’s business in the country.
According to a report by The News, the PSO board of directors has given the go-ahead to fulfill the necessary conditions before bidding on Easypaisa and Telenor Pakistan. PSO has completed the bidding documents and is conducting due diligence in the hopes of acquiring stakes in Easypaisa and Telenor, added the report.
Telenor is moving forward with plans to sell its operations which could be worth roughly $1 billion. The operator is collaborating with Citigroup Inc. and will soon invite first-round bids for the business.
Strategic buyers with existing operations/businesses in Pakistan from the Middle East and Asia are expected to make bids. Negotiations are reportedly underway, but there is no guarantee that they would result in a transaction.
Besides Pakistan’s biggest oil marketing company (PSO), other relatively better-positioned organizations like PTCL Group have also shown interest in acquiring Telenor Pakistan’s operations and management in totality, ProPakistani reported on January 31st.
Telenor Group, which operates telecom businesses in nine markets across Europe and Asia, is now shifting its focus to European markets as it recently merged its operations in Thailand. A similar pattern could be followed in Pakistan where PTCL might merge Telenor with Ufone, the cellular arm of the PTCL Group if they succeed in acquiring the former’s domestic operations.
Telenor Group previously wrapped up its operations in India, Myanmar, and Indonesia as well.
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