Airtel shares rise 11% on Telenor India acquisition

New Delhi: Shares of Bharti Airtel soared 11 percent on Thursday reaching one-year high after the telecom operator said it will acquire the business of Telenor India for an undisclosed sum in all seven circles where it holds spectrum.

The stock surged 10.93 per cent to Rs 400.65 -- a 52-week high -- on BSE.

At NSE, shares of the company soared 11 per cent to a one year peak of Rs 401.

Airtel today said it has "entered into a definitive agreement with Telenor South Asia Investments Pte Ltd to acquire Telenor (India) Communications Private Limited."

In a separate statement, the Norwegian multinational Telenor said that the transaction will not trigger any impairment. "As of fourth quarter 2016, the remaining value of tangible and intangible assets in Telenor India amounted to NOK 0.3 billion. The transaction is expected to close within 12 months," Telenor said.

Airtel is India's largest wireless operator with over 269 million subscribers and a revenue market share of over 33 per cent.

As the new owner, Airtel will take over Telenor India's spectrum, licenses and operations, including its employees and customer base of 44 million.