Deutsche giant eyes TOT

Deutsche giant eyes TOT

BANGKOK (DPA): Deutsche Telecom and several other foreign communications giants have expressed a keen interest in gaining a stake in the Telephone Organization of Thailand (TOT) -- a state monoply, reports said Saturday.

Thailand's Transport and Communications Minister Suthep Thueksuban said the German telecom giant, along with Nippon Telegraph, the Telephone Corp of Japan and an unidentified U.S. communications company was interested in buying a stake in TOT, one of several state enterprises earmarked for partial privatization, said the Bangkok Post newspaper.

"They are interested in taking a 25 per cent stake in TOT no matter how much the shares will be priced. They said the telecoms business in Thailand has bright prospects as landline phones belong to only 12 per cent of the Thai people," said Suthep.