Telenor must continue JV to stay in India, rules court

Telenor has been told that it may only bid for
 spectrum in India as part of its Uninor JV

A court in India has ruled that Norwegian operator group Telenor may only bid for spectrum in the country’s upcoming 2G auction if it does so as part of its joint venture with Indian real estate firm Unitech. The auction is now set to be held in January 2013, after the Supreme Court of India granted the government another deadline extension.

The operator has sought to cut ties with its Indian partner, after losing the 2G licences it won in the country’s 2008 spectrum auction.

However, the District Court of Gurgaon, has now upheld an injunction from Unitech to prevent Telenor from “participating, negotiating, engaging in or financially being interested in the auction processes conducted by the government/government agencies for fresh allotment of licenses/spectrum, other than through respondent no.1 (Unitech Wireless)”.

Tor Odland, VP for group communications at Telenor, told Telecoms.com that the operator is appealing the decision.

“There’s a hearing set for September and we aim to continue arguing our case,” he said.

“Our objective remains to potentially bid with a new company, and as such, we deem the partnership with Unitech to be over. We are currently scanning the market for potential partners.”

Telenor had already invited interested parties to bid for assets owned by the JV, called Uninor, of which the operator owns 67 per cent, but Odland said that it is awaiting a final decision from the courts as to whether it will be able to.

“There has been no decision on that – it’s a matter that has been challenged by Unitech.”

Source: www.telecoms.com

Telenor attempts to auction off Indian business

Norwegian incumbent operator Telenor is attempting to auction off its business in India, Uninor, as it seeks to cut ties with its JV partner,Indian real estate firm Unitech in the wake of the 2G licensing scandal.

Telenor is attempting to auction of its assets in India, despite objections from JV partner Unitech

The operator owns 67 per cent of Uninor, with the remaining stake owned by Unitech. In February this year, the JV lost the 2G licences it won in the country’s 2008 spectrum auction after India’s Supreme Court cancelled the licenses amid allegations of corruption.

Uninor has said it will auction its business and assets to get maximum possible returns for its investors and has invited interested parties to bid by August 6, 2012. However, Unitech is attempting to veto the proposal and warned that it may initiate legal action if Uninor goes ahead with the auction.

“In view of the impending Supreme Court mandated cancellation of license on Sep 7, 2012, Uninor management has decided to conduct an auction of Uninor’s business, including its assets, while the company is still a going concern,” Uninor said in a statement.

“This will allow the company to generate the maximum possible returns for its creditors and also secure the future of Uninor’s customers, employees and business partners in the hands of new ownership,” it added.

Telenor said in a separate statement that despite the circumstances, it is willing to participate in this auction and procure all of Uninor’s business, claiming that this will ensure that the value of Uninor’s business is preserved, and not allowed to be destroyed.

“As regards Unitech’s veto rights, we believe these are automatically forfeited once it is established that the shareholders’ agreement and all rights enshrined in it, was based on fraud. We are willing to establish this in court, should the need arise,” Telenor added.

Unitech Managing Director Sanjay Chandra had been arrested for his alleged involvement in the irregularities and is currently on bail.

Source: www.telecoms.com