BANGKOK: Thai telecom firm Jasmine International PCL will find it tough to quickly recoup the US$2.1bil it needs to pay for a licence to offer faster 4G mobile data, analysts said, as the company seeks a foreign partner to help shoulder the cost.
Broadband operator Jasmine, a relative newcomer to mobile telecoms, outbid market leaders Advanced Info Service Pcl and Total Access Communication Pcl (TAC) last year to win the licence, forking out 75.65 billion baht (US$2.1bil), or more than three times its 21 billion baht market value. CEO Pete Bodharamik has said Jasmine wants to sell an up to 30% stake in the mobile unit, a decision analysts said was too hasty. A Jasmine executive declined to comment further about the company’s financing plans, saying: “There is nothing to add at this moment”.
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