Finally it has been done. Essar vice-chairman Ravi Ruia and Vodafone chief executive Arun Sarin have agreed to work together. What does it all mean:
# the company will be called Vodafone Essar, but services will be on the Vodafone brand.
# Ravi Ruia will be chairman and Arun Sarin will be the vice-chairman
# the management team will be led by Asim Ghosh
# it is still awaiting approval of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), which should be done in the next couple of weeks
# the Ruias can sell their 33% stake over the next four years to Vodafone for $ 5 billion
# the Ruias will have four members on the 12-member board
Sarin wants Vodafone Essar to be India's # 1 mobile company by 2010 with a 20-25% market share. After all, as we start, Vodafone Essar is the third largest in the Vodafone empire after the United States and Germany. Sarin was at his aggressive best, while Ravi Ruia seemed a mellowed person.
All that sounds great. But, then how long will Sarin's honeymoon with the Ruias continue? That could simply decide whether this venture emerges as India's leading mobile service provider. Keep checking.
An aside: Sarin's Hindi is quite anglicised despite being in India till he completed his IIT!!
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