The Norwegian telco said the market value of its stake is $2.38B
Norwegian telecom operator Telenor announced it will sell its 33% stake in international mobile operator VimpelCom.
The European carrier said that it will explore all options to divest its shares in VimpelCom and that it will now fully focus on creating value in core operations.
“The VimpelCom asset, where Telenor holds a minority position without the possibility to fully control the company, has been challenging. Based on a strategic review by the board and the CEO, and after due considerations, Telenor Group has decided to divest its shares in VimpelCom,” Chairman Svein Aaser said.
Telenor also said that the market value of the VimpelCom shares represents approximately 8% of Telenor’s market capitalization.
The current market value of Telenor’s stake in the Amsterdam-based telco is approximately 20 billion kroner ($2.38 billion). Telenor has invested 15 billion kroner in VimpelCom.
Telenor did not set a time frame for the divestment, but said the divestment process could be lengthy.
“We are aware of Telenor’s intention to sell its shares in VimpelCom over the course of time and we welcome their clarification that they do not intend to convert their preferred shares,” VimpelCom said in a separate statement. “As VimpelCom moves forward with its recently announced new business strategy, we will work with Telenor to ensure a successful divestiture of their stake.”
VimpelCom had approximately 213 million subscribers by the end of June. The telco operates in Russia, Italy, Algeria, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Georgia, Tajikistan, Laos and Zimbabwe.
France reaches 21,645 sites authorized for LTE service
France had 21,645 sites authorized for LTE and 18,595 locations in service as of Oct. 1, according to recent information provided by French spectrum agency ANFR.
The number of authorized LTE sites increased by 1% compared to the previous month. A total of 15,062 sites were authorized in the 2.6 GHz band, 12,284 in the 800 MHz band and 7,225 in the 1800 MHz band. Mobile operator Orange France had 7,092 LTE sites in operation, followed by Bouygues Telecom with 6,756 sites, Free Mobile with 4,648 sites and Numericable-SFR with 3,508 sites.
