Telia Company announced a plan to divest a part of its stake in Turkish operator Turkcell, as it ramps up an ongoing shift to focus on its operations in the Nordics and Baltics.

In a statement, Telia, which holds a 38 per cent stake in Turkcell, said its subsidiary Sonera launched an offer to institutional investors of approximately 150 million shares, representing around 6.8 per cent of the operator’s issued share capital.

Telia holds a 14 per cent direct stake in the Turkish player, and a 24 per cent indirect stake. If all the shares are sold from the process, its direct stake will be reduced to 7.2 per cent, said the company.

“Today’s proposed sale of a portion of Telia Company’s shareholding in Turkcell is consistent with the strategy to focus on operations in the Nordics and Baltics,” the company explained in its statement.

Telia first announced it would gradually make an exit from its operations in Eurasia in 2015, as part of a change in strategy.

Its initial exit plan involved seven markets; Nepal, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Tajikistan.

Most recently, it sold its operations in Tajikistan to the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development.

Telia added it would continue to be the largest shareholder in Turkcell following the proposed transaction, and there was no “present intention regarding any sale of the shares that represent Telia Company’s indirect interest in Turkcell”.

The transaction is expected to complete on 8 May.