Sigve Brekke appointed new Telenor Group CEO

He will succeed Jon Fredrik Baksaas, who is stepping down as CEO after 13 years

The Telenor Group on Tuesday announced the appointment of Sigve Brekke as the company's new group president and chief executive officer (CEO).

Brekke joined Telenor in 1999 and currently heads Telenor Group's Asia operations . He will succeed Jon Fredrik Baksaas by August 17 as he steps down after 13 years as the company president and CEO.

Under Brekke's leadership, Telenor has added more than 100 million subscribers in Asia. The value creation from Asia has been significant and it now represents over 40 per cent of the total enterprise value of Telenor Group. Telenor is well positioned to monetise on the next growth wave - providing internet for all, according to a company statement.

“We are poised to capture value from the opportunities arising from strong demand for internet services and I look forward to executing our strategy together with our 33,000 employees,” Brekke said.

As Managing Director -- Uninor till 2013, he was instrumental in starting Telenor’s operations in India under the brand Uninor along with a joint venture partner – Unitech, a realty firm.  However, Uninor faced difficult times with cancellation of all its licenses as directed by the Supreme Court and a bitter fight with JV partner. Unitech had a pan India license earlier to offer mobile services and had formed a JV with Telenor to launch operations.

After months of feud, Unitech had sold off its stake in the JV to Telenor. Also, Telenor took 100 per cent control of the Indian firm after Indian government allowed 100 per cent FDI in telecom sector. Subsequently, it acquired spectrum in six circles in the auction, where it currently offer mobile services. It also acquired spectrum in Assam circle later, where it is yet to launch services.

Brekke was also responsible overall responsibility for Telenor affairs in India as the head of Asia. He had earlier said the time in India has been both challenging and rewarding.

According to the statement, Brekke's annual base salary will be NOK 5.9 million. In addition he will be entitled to a long-term incentive grant of 30 per cent of his annual base salary. His maximum annual bonus is 50 per cent of annual base salary and he will retire at 65. Brekke has served as the Deputy Minister (State Secretary) of Defence from 1993 to 1996. He holds a Master of Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he also served as an Associate Research Fellow.

In September 2014, Baksaas extended his tenure for another year, until the end of 2015. In preparation of Baksaas' retirement, Telenor's Board of Directors initiated a thorough process with a broad set of internal and external candidates to find his successor. Baksaas will continue as advisor to the Board of Directors until the end of 2016 and will serve as Chairman of GSMA, the global industry organisation for mobile operators.