Norway headquartered Telenor took another step towards offloading its minority ownership in Veon (formerly known as VimpelCom) after selling a 4 per cent stake in company for approximately $259 million.

In a statement, Telenor said it was selling 70 million shares in the company at an offer price of $3.75 per share, with the offering set to close on 12 April.

The move means Telenor will be left with approximately 346.7 million shares, representing a 19.7 per cent stake worth around $1.3 billion. The company already sold 164 million shares, around 8.1 per cent of Netherlands-based Veon, in September via a US public offering.

Telenor first announced its intentions to cut ownership ties with Veon in October 2015, when it held a 33 per cent stake, describing its experience with the company as “challenging”.

The Norwegian company had been feuding with VimpelCom’s other major shareholder, Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman, and there was also no option for the company to take full control in the future, which helped with the decision to sell its share.

Telenor said the share sale means Veon will no longer be treated as an associated company in its financial reporting.