Indian mobile phone operator Essar has abandoned plans to inject part of its 33 percent stake in the Vodafone Essar venture into a listed shell company after objections by its partner Vodafone (VOD.L), according to two people familiar with the situation. Instead, the partners have agreed to appoint two investment banks to value the stake in the Indian mobile operator as a precursor to Essar deciding whether to sell it to Vodafone. Essar was previously planning to inject an 11 percent stake into Indian Securities (ISL) (ISEC.BO), a listed company it controls. It argued that this would reveal its true value. Vodafone saw this as an attempt to artificially inflate the stake's value as a precursor to selling it, arguing that ISL was a highly illiquid vehicle.
Source
