Cash-strapped PSO to buy Telenor Pakistan
Pakistan State Oil (PSO), which plans to take part in the initial round of bidding for the telecom company’s assets in Pakistan, wants to purchase Telenor’s activities there.
The PSO board of directors has approved completing the requirements before submitting a bid for Easypaisa and Telenor Pakistan, The News reports.
According to the source, PSO has completed the bidding documents and is doing its due diligence in the hopes of acquiring shares of Easypaisa and Telenor.
Telenor is proceeding with preparations to sell its businesses, which could fetch about $1 billion. The business will shortly be open for first-round bids, according to the operator and Citigroup Inc.
Anticipated buyers from the Middle East and Asia, who have existing activities or enterprises in Pakistan, are expected to submit their bids. People say negotiations are ongoing, but there is no guarantee that they will result in a deal.
Along with the largest oil marketing firm in Pakistan (PSO), other, comparatively better-positioned companies including PTCL Group have expressed interest in acquiring the whole operation and management of Telenor Pakistan.
Telenor Group, which has telecom businesses in nine nations around Europe and Asia, is now refocusing on European markets following the merger of its Thai operations. If PTCL is successful in acquiring Telenor’s domestic operations, they may merge Telenor with Ufone, the cellular division of the PTCL Group, in Pakistan.
It comes as a surprise in the midst of economic crisis in which petroleum sector has been affect most that Cash-strapped PSO to buy Telenor Pakistan.
