Airtel-Telenor India merger gets Competition Commission of India’s nod

Airtel and Telenor signed the agreement for merger on February 2017 under which Airtel will acquire Telenor India’s running operations in seven circles.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the proposed merger of Bharti Airtel with Telenor India, Airtel said on Tuesday.

Sunil Bharti Mittal, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises shakes hands with Sigve Brekke, Telenor Group CEO after the announcement of Airtel’s acquisition of Telenor (India) in February. (PTI file photo)

Last week, Bharti Airtel and Telenor India also filed a joint application before National Company Law Tribunal for approval of their merger following nod from the market regulator Sebi and stock exchanges -- BSE and NSE.

“We wish to inform you that Competition Commission of India (CCI) vide its letter dated June 5, 2017 has approved the proposed merger of Telenor (India) Communications Pvt Ltd with Bharti Airtel Ltd,” the company said in a BSE filing.

Airtel and Telenor signed the agreement for merger on February 2017 under which Airtel will acquire Telenor India’s running operations in seven circles -- Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, UP (East), UP (West) and Assam.

These circles represent a high population concentration and therefore, offer a high potential for growth. The proposed acquisition will include transfer of all of Telenor India’s assets and customers, further augmenting Airtel’s overall customer base and network,” the company had earlier said.

It will also enable Airtel to further bolster its strong spectrum footprint in these seven circles, with the addition of 43.4 MHz spectrum in the 1800 MHz band -- widely known as 2G spectrum, but it is now being used for 4G services as well.