Sistema looking beyond telecom in India

KOLKATA: Russia's Sistema JSFC, the $34-billion oil-to-telecoms conglomerate, is looking to diversify beyond telecom in India by exploring strategic alliances in pharmaceuticals, healthcare and IT sectors, even as it looks for Indian partners for its ventures in its home market.
At present, Sistema operates CDMA-based mobile services in the country in partnership with India's Shyam Group and has invested $3.5 billion in the telecom venture.
"Beyond telecom, we've developed strong relationships with a wide spectrum of Indian businesses and expect some to translate into partnerships in the pharmaceuticals and healthcare sectors, which remain our focus zones," Mikhail Shamolin, president & chief executive at Sistema JSFC, told ET in an exclusive interview.
He, however, declined to name specific Indian business houses with whom Sistema JSFC is en gaged in discussions.
Sistema JSFC, he said, is also keen to partner with an experienced venture capital firm "to invest in disruptive technologies and pure IT projects," although the specific initiative is at a nascent stage.
Shamolin reiterated Sistema JSFC's keenness to work with the Narendra Modi-led government for developing smart cities, by leveraging its expertise in the field. "Sistema has built nine smart city projects to date, including the ones in Moscow and Sochi, which hosted the Winter Olympics, and we are perfectly placed to help and share our knowledge with the Indian government in that field," he said.
Last year, ET had reported about Sistema's presentation to the urban development ministry on the smart cities it had developed in Moscow and other Russian cities such as Rostov, Ufa, Kazan, Smolensk and Novosibirsk. Prime Minister Modi has proposed building 100 smart cities as a way to push economic growth and reduce pressure on existing cities, which have inadequate infrastructure to manage rapid influx from villages.
Sistema is also scouting for potential Indian JV partners to grow its private healthcare and consumer retail operations in Russia.
"Sistema is open to partnerships with potential Indian co-investors, including VC firms, keen to enter the private healthcare and consumer retail sectors in Russia," said Shamolin.
Sistema JSFC fully owns Detsky Mir Group, the largest children's goods retailer in Russia and the CIS, and also has majority ownership in Medsi, the leading provider of private healthcare in Russia, according to the company's website.
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