Nokia, Siemens to sell stake in telecom venture: report

Finnish group Nokia and Siemens of Germany are in talks with investment fund Blackstone and The Gores Group on a sale of at least 30 percent of Nokia Siemens Network, a press report said on Wednesday.

Siemens was not able to comment immediately on the report, which appeared in the German weekly Manager Magazin.

Other groups that had expressed interest in buying into the jointly held telecommunications infrastructure company have withdrawm from the bidding, the magazine added without identifying its sources.

Nokia Siemens Network was founded in 2006 and reported annual sales last year of more than 12 billion euros (16 billion dollars).

But it also posted a net loss of 1.64 billion euros, and its parent groups expressed interest this year in finding a new investor.

The company employs around 64,000 workers.

(c) 2010 AFP