Telenor planning to sell Pakistani division

Norwegian telecoms group Telenor is planning to sell off its Pakistani division, Bloomberg writes, citing sources familiar with the matter. Telenor is reportedly working with Citigroup to arrange first round bids from interested parties later this month. The cellco, Pakistan’s second-largest mobile provider by subscriptions according to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, is estimated to be valued at around USD1 billion. Telenor conducted a review of its operations in Pakistan in July this year after recognising a NOK2.5 billion (USD243 million) impairment related to the unit in Q2 2022 due to the deteriorating macro-economic situation in the country and an increase in licence fees.