Anil scouts for handsets in China

Reliance Communications chief Anil Ambani is believed to have gone to China, South Korea and Taiwan to talk to leading handset and equipment manufacturers.

Insiders say Ambani is looking to buy equipment for his expansion plans. It is believed he is in talks with companies like ZTE and Huawei Technologies.

Currently in China, he will also visit handset manufacturers in South Korea and Taiwan which include LG and Banquet.

A company spokesperson, however, declined to comment.

Most of these foreign companies are already present in India. ZTE is jointly undertaking a Rs 600 crore project for laying BSNL's 3.5 million CDMA and WLL lines. While LG has a distinct presence in the handset market, Huawei recently entered the Indian market.

Reliance Communications also has a tie-up with China Telecom to lay cable lines across Asia, but sources say Ambani's visit is primarily focused on handset and equipment for its overall expansion. Falcon, owned by Reliance Communications, connects West Asia through its under sea cable network.

The company is on an expansion spree both in the domestic and the international market. It recently applied for licences across 21 circles in India for its GSM plans on 1800 MHz and is also looking for licences overseas.

The group is eyeing mobile licences in Kenya, Bhutan which recently opened doors to foreign operators on a joint venture basis and Morocco.

It is also planning to lay three broadband cable networks for its other initiatives that includes IP TV.

The first one will span from India to China through Nepal, second an undersea cable between Asia and the US and an extension of its Falcon cable from the Maldives to East Africa at which analysts say will cost to the tune of $1 billion.