European Communications

Last update11:14:00 AM

Telenor may quit India after 2G row

Norwegian telecoms firm Telenor is threatening to pull out of India in a row over the country's 2G mobile phone licences.

Telenor's warning comes after the company wrote down the rest of its mobile business in India, worth €513 million, in reaction to New Delhi cancelling 2G licences as part of a fraud probe.

The move to write down the remaining fixed and intangible assets in India was described as a "precautionary measure" by Telenor.

A company spokesperson said: "After the write-down, Telenor has no further accounting exposure related to India."

Telenor bought a stake in Indian mobile firm Uninor worth 67.25 percent in 2009, a company that holds 22 of the 122 licences which were recently cancelled by India's Supreme Court.

The licences, issued in 2008 to companies with foreign partners, were cancelled on the grounds that their sales were rigged, causing New Delhi to lose out on €30 billion in revenue.

Telenor has previously announced intentions of seeking a new partner in India, and of seeking damages from its former strategic partner, Unitech.