Unitech Wireless to start service by year-end, invest Rs 7K cr

Unitech Wireless, the telecom arm of real estate major Unitech Ltd, has said it will start mobile services in five states by the end of this year and invest about Rs 7,000 crore in the next one and a half years for rolling out services in more circles.     

"For the next one and half years, the requirement is Rs 7,000 crore which is equity funding," Unitech Managing Director Sanjay Chandra said.     

However, he made it clear that Unitech Ltd would not make any capital investment in Unitech Wireless. "No intentions of investing more money," he said.     

The company, which has recently announced that Norway's Telenor would acquire an additional 7.25 per cent stake in it over and above the 60 per cent equity it intended to acquire earlier, said it has "no intentions" of offloading more stake.     

"Even when we sold our stake to Telenor it was money coming into the company. So, now between Telenor's money and our previous money, the company has an equity capital of Rs 6,670 crore, and our total project cost is Rs 14,000 crore," Chandra said.     

By the end of this year, Unitech Wireless plans to launch GSM-based mobile telephony services starting from the first five circles of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala where it has got spectrum.

The company has already given an IT contract to software vendor Wipro.     

About bidding for third generation radio frequency, Chandra said: "We are evaluating ... We have not yet decided. We will take a final call on how much we will bid up to. We will definitely be participating. Till what level it makes financial sense for us.. As soon as the new policy and guidelines are announced we will take a call on it."     

It may be selective because nationwide 3G does not make sense for us.     

Headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Telenor is a global telecom service provider and data and media communications services. It is one of Norway's largest companies, owned 54 per cent by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Norway.     

Telenor would inject a total of Rs 6,120 crore into Unitech Wireless, which would result in its 67.25 per cent shareholding (subject to regulatory approval) in the company.