British telecom major Vodafone is planning to submit a formal offer to its takeover target Hutch-Essar, India's fourth largest mobile operator, in the second week of February."We will make a bid by the second week of February. We are doing due diligence," Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin told PTI here.The British company, which started studying the books of Hutch-Essar last month, is focusing on emerging markets for growth, and is pursuing the acquisition of Hong Kong-based Hutchison Telecom's 67% stake in the venture.Sarin flew down to New Delhi last month to hold parleys with key cabinet ministers and Hutch-Essar officials about Vodafone's plans.He also met Sunil Mittal, chief of Bharti Airtel, in which Vodafone holds 9.9% stake. Mittal had earlier said that he was open to the idea of Vodafone exiting Bharti by selling its stake in the open market.During his India visit, Sarin had also offered to partner Ruias-promoted Essar, the Indian partner with 33% stake in Hutch-Essar. Essar, however, is keen on acquiring control of the venture. Besides Essar, the other players interested in Hutch-Essar include Reliance Communications, Maxis Communications and the Hinduja Group.Early this week, an official of Egypt's Orascom said his company did not rule itself out from the race for Hutch-Essar. Russian telecom player Altimo, too, has evinced interest in India's fourth largest mobile player.
