Hutchison plans $1b loan: Sources

Hutchison plans $1b loan: Sources

HONG KONG: Hong Kong-listed telecom operator Hutchison Telecommunications International Ltd. (HTIL) is planning to launch a US$1 billion syndicated loan this week to finance expansion in India, Indonesia and Vietnam, people close to the deal said on Monday.

The company and its team of banks -- including HSBC Holdings, Standard Chartered, Calyon, ABM Amro and WestLB -- are set to meet on Wednesday to finalize the details of the loan, the sources said.

HTIL, which is a unit of conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. controlled by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing, declined to comment.

HTIL plans to invest HK$4 billion in India -- the company's largest revenue contributor -- over the next three years to expand its mobile operations into a network that covers the entire country.

In Southeast Asia, the company will launch mobile services in Vietnam in the first quarter of 2006, and in Indonesia in the second quarter. -- Dow Jones