8 years after its debut, and a year after its re-launch, 2G-struck Telenor might exit India citing limited presence

Telenor, the Norwegian multinational telecommunications company that started its India operations in 2008, might soon be making an exit from the country, as its India telecom business hasn't been able to find a buyer so far.

With no 3G or 4G services, the Norwegian telco silently stands in a corner, watching its rivals gaining spectrums as days pass, while Telenor has been confined to a few pockets.


The Fornebu-headquartered company has spectrum in seven circles but out of 22 zones present in India, it operates in just six, with airwaves only in 1800 Mhz band. As of now, the company is said to be looking for a valuation between $1.6 billion and $1.8 billion (Rs 11,000-12,000 crore); however, experts believe that the best that it may be able to get is around $1 billion (Rs 6,800 crore), and the spectrum would be the main saleable asset.

Ever since its debut, Telenor has invested over $3 billion in India, but to no avail. In fact, in 2012, it had even lost all its India licences, and Supreme Court annulling its licences among the 122 to tackle the 2G scam was a huge setback.

As a ray of hope to survive in the world’s fastest growing mobile market, it has just deployed a technology that allows offering LTE mobile broadband on a narrow band of spectrum in Varanasi. By the end of this year, it plans to expand it to the six circles that it operates in.
However, analysts are doubtful about the technology, saying that it has come too late for Telenor into the data market.

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