South African and Indian officials are holding talks in Mumbai to discuss the planned merger between mobile phone firms MTN and India’s Bharti Airtel. A merger would create the world’s third-largest mobile phone group.

Under the proposal MTN would take a 36% stake in Bharti, while Bharti would get a 49% stake in the South African firm.

The two sides will discuss regulatory matters regarding the deal. The South African Treasury says a tie-up offers “excellent possibilities for synergy”.

The two companies had been in merger talks last year, but these broke down when they failed to agree on who would lead the merged group.