Airtel acquires Norway-based Telenor India

Leading telecom operator Airtel today said it has entered into a definitive agreement with Norway-based telecom player Telenor South Asia Investment Pte Ltd (Telenor) to acquire Telenor India. The company said that the acquisition is subject to requisite regulatory approvals. As per the agreement, Airtel will acquire seven circles which are into operations now that include Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, UP (East and West) and Assam. “The proposed acquisition will include transfer of all of Telenor India’s assets and customers, further augmenting Airtel’s overall customer base and network. It will also enable Airtel to further bolster its strong spectrum footprint in these seven circles, with the addition of 43.4 MHz spectrum in the 1800 MHz band,” the company said in a statement. Gopal Vittal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (India and South Asia), Bharti



Airtel, said that the acquisition is meant to offer world-class and affordable telecom services through a robust spectrum portfolio spread across multiple bands—something which Jio has also tried to do. “On completion, the proposed acquisition will undergo seamless integration, both on the customer as well as the network side, and further strengthen our market position in several key circles. The customers of Telenor India will now be able to enjoy India’s widest and fastest voice & data network, and a range of Airtel’s world-class products and services,” Mr Vittal said. Sigve Brekke, Chief Executive of Telenor Group said the decision to exit India has not been taken lightly. “After thorough consideration, it is our view that the significant investments needed to secure Telenor India’s future business on a standalone basis will not give an acceptable level of return.