Norwegian telecom firm Telenor today posted a 36 per cent dip in net profit to $171.4 million, while its Indian joint venture, Uninor, was in the red, mainly due to start-up expenses.
Telenor is present in India through its JV partnership with Indian realty major Unitech under the Uninor brand.
The Indian JV posted revenue of $9.23 million (about Rs 41.70 crore) in the first quarter.
“In India, we are pleased to see the roll-out activities continued at high speed. Network quality is already high in the circles where we have launched and 180,000 points of sale and around 2,500 employees are in place to support Uninor’s development in the market,” Baksaas said.
At the end of the first quarter of 2010, Telenor’s ownership interest in Uninor was 67.25 per cent.
