PTCL Group Shows Keen Interest in Acquiring Telenor Pakistan: Source

The famous telco of Pakistan Telenor has been facing financial troubles and losses for a long time now. The company has also lost a considerable number of subscribers in recent times. Previously, there were rumors that the company is planning to shift its business and also considering selling the business. Now, as per an official source, the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) is planning to make a non-binding bid to buy Telenor Pakistan for a price that might range from $800 million to $1.2 billion. In a recent meeting, the PTCL Board of Directors showed keen interest in acquiring the majority of Telenor Pakistan’s shares. Furthermore, they want to acquire Telenor Pakistan and also retain management control.

PTCL Showing Keen Interest to Buy Telenor Group

The parent firm of PTCL, Etisalat, will provide guarantees to raise commercial loans in order to finalize this purchase. PTCL’s intention to buy the shares of Telenor Pakistan had been conveyed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to top government sources. Furthermore, the source also said that PTCL will make its offer to complete this deal if both parties accept the non-binding offer.

Pending Issues that need to be resolved by Etisalat:

However, there are other issues that need to be resolved, such as Etisalat’s request to the government that they are prepared to pay the deal sum in dollars outside of Pakistan in light of the country’s continuing dollar liquidity crisis. There are still some other unresolved concerns as well. These include Etisalat’s obligation to pay an outstanding $800 million for PTCL’s privatization, a problem that has persisted since 2005–2006. In several regions in the country, there are still unresolved concerns with the transfer of land in the name of Etisalat. Thirdly, there are still unsolved issues with the PTCL employees. As a result, this agreement would only be possible if all outstanding issues are resolved.

If the purchase goes through, the PTCL will own two Pakistani-based companies, Ufone and Telenor Pakistan. Because Ufone’s balance sheet prevents it from acquiring another significant market player, Etisalat is prepared to contribute to the completion of this anticipated transaction.

As the Government of Pakistan also owns shares in PTCL, thus. the Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet and Federal Cabinet will need to provide their permission if the binding offer is made by PTCL.

Moreover, it is pertinent to mention here that Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar presided over a discussion on the telecom industry at the Finance Division, according to a formal notice released by the Ministry of Finance. The meeting was attended by the Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Syed Amin Ul Haque, the Federal Minister for Law and Justice Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar, the Secretaries of Finance, Privatization, and IT & Telecom.

The PTCL in particular and the telecom industry in general were discussed at the meeting. Dar stressed that the government’s nominee directors on the PTCL Board must actively contribute to the company’s overall performance.

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