Telecoms operator Telenor is exploring the sale of its Myanmar unit, industry publication TMT Finance reported.
Myanmar accounted for 7 percent of Telenor’s earnings last year. Earlier, Telenor exited from India by selling the business to Airtel.

Telenor has hired Citi to sell the business. Non-binding bids are expected in the coming weeks, the report said.

A Telenor spokesperson said the company does not comment on market rumours. Citi declined to comment.

Telenor wrote off the value of its Myanmar operation in May in light of the deteriorating security and human rights situation in the country, where its mobile business remains severely restricted following the Feb. 1 military coup.

Telenor has invited some Chinese buyers to bid, TMT Finance said, which would likely not be subject to international sanctions faced by other international telecom companies.

Qatar’s Ooredoo, the other foreign operator in Myanmar, had shown interest in buying Telenor Myanmar.

Telenor has around 18 million customers in Myanmar, serving a third of its 54 million population. It is one of the biggest foreign investors in Myanmar, which it entered in 2014.