ISLAMABAD (APP) - Minister of State and Chairman, Board of Investment (BOI) Saleem H. Mandviwalla on Thursday assured the Telenor Group that they will voice their concerns of taxation with the concerned authorities and facilitate and assist them in every possible way. A five-member delegation of Telenor Group which was headed by Harald Norvik, Chairman Telenor Group called on him here and discussed various issues regarding the current tax rate situation. Mandviwalla said that Telenor is now a flagship company of Pakistan which has captured a sizable market share within a very short period of time through their operations in the country. He lauded Telenor Group for recognizing the potential in the cellular market and investing a significant amount of US$ 2 billion in this sector. Telenor Group argued that the current GST for telecom companies is higher than any other sector amounting to 19.5pc and an introduction of value added tax (VAT) in this sector would reduce this rate. They said that it would help telecom companies in the country to focus in other areas of investment. Vice president corporate division, Amir Ibrahim said that currently telecom sectors contribute approximately Rs. 120 billion in advance tax and GST to the Government of Pakistan. He said that just recently the Cabinet resolved the Access promotion Contribution (APC) issue and have allowed a 2-2.5 cent APC which is still less than 5 cents which is provided to PTCL even though most access has been given by cellular companies in the country. Most people do not even have a landline to their name and are solely dependent on their cellular phones. The decision on APC will allow Telenor to reinvest and help them to focus on expansion in untapped areas and municipalities in Pakistan, he added. He further mentioned that currently only 30-40pc of areas are covered in Pakistan and currently 60-70pc population is a subscribed with a cellular network. Therefore there is a tremendous opportunity to introduce cellular services in remote areas of Pakistan. The noted that Balochistan proposes a tremendous opportunity, if the Government can provide adequate facilities and security to telecom companies in the province. Since its establishment in Pakistan, Telenor has not repatriated a single dollar as they believe in a lone term investment perspective and have reinvested all their earnings back in to Telenor Pakistan, he said. chairman Telenor Group Harald Norvick appreciated the Board ofInvestments guidance and assistance during their set up and throughout their tenure in Pakistan.