CK Hutchison is continuing its pursuit of market consolidation, with the company reportedly locked in talks with Scandinavian telecoms firm Telenor over merging their respective Danish and Swedish businesses.
The Hong Kong-based conglomerate, which owns Three's operations in the UK, Republic of Ireland, and much of Europe, said yesterday (March 16) that it's in active discussions about potential merger deals in Denmark and Sweden.
Citing two sources familiar with the matter, the Financial Times reports that this company is Telenor, although noted that neither CK Hutchison nor Telenor provided comment to the rumors.
CK Hutchison added fuel to the reports, saying in its latest earnings call that it is 'exploring in-market consolidation opportunities, as well as pursuing initiatives to effect an asset-light strategy, including network sharing, in order to enhance profitability'.
Telenor is the second biggest mobile and fixed broadband provider in Denmark, while it's third for market share in Sweden.
The company has a history of merger deals too, with the Norwegian telco recently merging its Thai business unit Total Access Communication (DTAC) with True Corporation, which is backed by Thai conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group (CP Group) and China Mobile.
It shouldn't come as too much of a surprise, with CK Hutchison signaling an intent to push consolidation for a number of years now.
In the UK, the company is currently in talks with Liberty Global's Vodafone over a merger deal with Three UK. Last week, it was reported that the two operators were edging closer to completing the deal.
Analysts have called the merger an obvious move for both parties, with a deal set to provide the potential merger with 30 percent market share in the UK.
The merger will see Vodafone own 51 percent of the company, with the remaining 49 percent held by Three.
Providing an update on the proposed merger, Canning Fok, the group’s co-managing director, CK Hutchison said the duo is doing everything possible to complete the merger, noting that he hopes the deal to be finalized soon.
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