Telenor has just received a green signal from Indian finance ministry to acquire 100% of its Indian telecom venture Telewings Telecommunications which operates under Uninor brand.

At present Telewings is owned by Telenor & Lakshdeep Investments in 74:26. Telenor entered in India via joint venture with Unitech in 2008-2009, and Unitech exited after the company’s licenses cancelled by Supreme Court in 2012. Presently Uninor offers GSM voice & data services in 7 circles. With 500cr investment plan for network expansion in existing circles, Telenor is looking for next spectrum auction for reaching more circles with the ‘sabse sasta’ schemes.

Telenor Mobile Communications AS, Norway through Telenor South Asia Investment Pte. Ltd (TSAI), Singapore will now buy remaining 26% from Lakshdeep Investments and will have Uninor as their 100% owned subsidiary. It will be Telenor’s 2nd 100% owned arm in Indian subcontinent.

After Indian government allowed 100% FDI in telecom, Vodafone became the first mobile operator to grab the opportunity, second is Telenor.