Telenor boss meets PM, as row with regulator deepens

The head of Norway's telecom giant Telenor met Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Saturday as its subsidiary Grameenphone fights off claims of over US$400 million in "unpaid" revenue, amid an audit dispute with the regulator. Telenor CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas was not originally scheduled to meet Hasina but accompanied ambassador Ragne Birte Lund who had been "scheduled to call on the prime minister", agencies report quoting PMO sources as saying. PM's press secretary Abul Kalam Azad only said the ambassador and the Telenor CEO discussed "matters of mutual interests". Azad did not give farther details. The meeting came in the wake of a raging dispute between the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) and largest operator Grameenphone over payment of Tk 30.34 billion (over US$ 400 million). The money, calculated by the regulator-appointed auditors on the basis of what it said unpaid share of its revenue, accumulated interests and unpaid tax on SIM cards. But GP did not accept the government claims as mentioned in the letter. A private news agency said the Telenor chief raised the issue of Grameenphone during the meeting and wanted to know whether there was any obstacle for them to do business in Bangladesh. The Prime Minister was learnt to have assured him that there would be no impediment for them from the government side. The Prime Minister told him GP is entitled to do business in the country as per rules and regulations, the sources said. The BTRC said it would follow legal path as Grameenphone gave preconditions before sitting for discussion over the unpaid revenue and tax. A GP delegation led by its Chief Communications Officer (CCO) Kazi Monirul Kabir went to BTRC office last Monday and asked the telecom regulatory body to withhold the letter which they had sent earlier. In the previous letter the BTRC asked Grameenphone to pay its unpaid revenue and tax amounting to Tk 30.34 billion by October 24 or face legal action. Later, BTRC and GP decided to sit for discussion to resolve the dispute over the issue on October 10. But the meeting was not held as BTRC did not agree to hold back the letter according to the pre-condition of GP. Coming out of the BTRC office, Kazi Monirul Kabir said they told the BTRC to hold back the letter first before holding any discussion. BTRC Chairman Zia Ahmed told reporters that GP is reluctant to sit for dialogue. "Now we will follow the course of law," he said. The telecom regulator issued a letter on October 3 asking GP for the payment of unpaid taxes including SIM tax, VAT and interest thereof up to March 31. On behalf of the BTRC, chartered accountant firm 'Fazal & Co' examined the GP's log books, reports, data, records, agreement between the company and other financial institutions, bills and other relevant documents. Of the total amount, Tk 21.46 billion will go to the BTRC while Tk 8.8 billion to the National Board of Revenue (NBR). Earlier, the BTRC said that they had found some other irregularities after auditing the operator's financial reports and related issues from its inception till March 31 last. The company showed the BTRC that it had 34.9 million subscribers till March, but the BTRC investigation found the actual number is 44.9 million, the BTRC said.