RIL targets Deutsche Telekom’s Netherlands business

Reliance Industries (RIL) is weighing a bid for Deutsche Telekom’s business in the Netherlands, Bloomberg reported.
Deutsche Telekom network EuropeDeutsche Telekom is seeking about $5.9 billion.

Deutsche Telekom is working with Morgan Stanley on the sale of the business, which has attracted interest from private equity firms including Apax Partners, Apollo Global, Providence Equity and Warburg Pincus, Bloomberg had reported last month.

Dutch telecom group Royal KPN in May said that it rejected an unsolicited high-level approach from investment firms EQT AB and Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners.

A deal for T-Mobile Netherlands would represent a rare purchase in Europe and come as Mukesh Ambani tries to transform Reliance from an old-economy conglomerate into a technology and e-commerce titan, the report said.

Deutsche Telekom entered the Dutch mobile-phone market in 2000, acquiring a stake in a venture with Belgacom and Tele Danmark.