New Delhi, July 29: Essar Group today said it has not taken a decision yet to exercise the option to sell its 33 per cent stake in the telecom JV with Vodafone and has time till May 2011 to make the move.
"We have time uptill May 2011 to decide on that (put option)," Prashant Ruia, Vice Chairman of Essar Energy, told reporters here.
He did not rule out the possibility of an IPO for selling Essar's stake in the JV with UK-based telecom giant Vodafone.
Essar's 33 per cent stake in the joint venture is valued at about USD 5 billion.
Under the 2007 shareholders agreement between the two companies, Essar has a put option of divesting its stake in the Vodafone Essar telecom venture.
Although the put option expires in May 2011, Essar has to exercise it within a one-year window, which opened on May 8, 2010.