Bharti eyes Saudi telecom market
Tuesday, 27 February 2007, 18:30 IST
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New Delhi: Bharti Airtel, India's largest private mobile operator confirmed that as part of a consortium, it is vying for mobile telephone license. In a statement, Bharti Airtel confirmed that it is supporting the Saudi-led consortium with a minority stake of 15 percent as stipulated by Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC)."The principal role of Bharti Airtel will be to provide comprehensive management services including negotiation with vendors, roll out of networks, brand building and distribution, setting up management processes and providing training and development under management services agreement," it added. Bharti will be getting a management fee in addition to reimbursement of all actual costs for its services. Currently, the firm has a customer base of 35.51 million, including 33.73 million mobile customers, commanding a market share of 22.8 percent, according to the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI). According to market sources, nine players have submitted their bids for the Saudi licence, including Reliance Communication, MTNL, Orascom Telecom of Egypt, Oger Telecom of Saudi Arabia, MTN of South Africa, and Turkcell of Turkey. Saudi Arabia is considered the largest and most lucrative telecom market in the Gulf region.
Source: IANS
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