Tele2 publ : Telia close to picking TDC's Kirkby as new CEO - Swedish daily SvD

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Telecom operator Telia plans to appoint Allison Kirkby, CEO of Danish telecoms company TDC Group, as its new chief executive, the Svenska Dagbladet (SvD) newspaper reported on Wednesday citing sources.

Kirkby, who was CEO of Telia rival Tele2 between 2015 and 2018, was the board's final candidate, the newspaper said.

A decision is expected shortly, it added. Telia declined to comment on the report.

Telia's previous CEO Johan Dennelind, who took the helm in 2013 and oversaw growth include a push into television - unexpectedly resigned in August.

Telia, in which the Swedish state owns 38%, proposed last week to replace chairwoman Marie Ehrling with Lars-Johan Jarnheimer, who served as CEO of Tele2 between 1999 and 2008 and is chairman of publishing group Egmont Media.

(Reporting by Helena Soderpalm; editing by Jason Neely)