Norway-headquartered telecommunications firm Telenor and Thailand-based conglomerate CP Group plan to merge their telecommunications subsidiaries in Thailand and collaborate on a joint corporate venturing effort.
CP and Telenor agreed on Tuesday to explore the creation of a new telecoms company through the combination of Telenor’s Dtac and CP Group’s True subsidiaries. The corporates would also look to raise between $100m and $200m of venture capital funding to invest in digital technology startups based in Thailand.
The deal would be struck through a voluntary tender offer pricing each Dtac share at THB47.76 ($1.42), or roughly 10.2 True shares per Dtac share, equating to a deal sized at approximately $8.6bn.
Telenor and CP would each own a third of the combined company through the transaction, with the remaining third in free float.
Sigve Brekke, Telenor Group’s chief executive, said: “We have experienced an accelerated digitalisation of Asian societies, and as we move forward, both consumers and businesses expect more advanced services and high-quality connectivity.
“We believe that the new company can take advantage of this digital shift to support Thailand’s digital leadership role, by taking global technology advancements into attractive services and high-quality products.”
