What happened: According to Dawn, Telenor Pakistan, country’s second-largest cellular service provider, might be exiting the country due to rising business costs and shrinking prospects. According to the publication’s sources, the company is in talks to sell its operations to an Emirates-based multinational telecom firm. Details: Although a Telenor Pakistan spokesperson declined to comment, sources told Dawn that talks between the Emirati firm, which already has a strong presence in Pakistan, and Telenor have reached an “advanced stage.” Dawn further stated that a source in the IT ministry also confirmed that a deal was in the works, but declined to share any additional details on the record. The company’s finances: The publication’s source cited the rising cost of doing business as the primary reason for the sale, claiming that the company had begun to lose money due to the rapid appreciation of the US dollar. According to the source, the company’s operational costs have reached $55 million, with the majority of this consumed by electricity prices. Documents show that in the previous fiscal year, the company paid around $17 million in power bills alone to keep its infrastructure running.
