LONDON/HONG KONG Vodafone and CK Hutchison will merge their British operations, the two groups said on Wednesday, creating the country's largest mobile operator.

The details came in a long-awaited announcement after the two companies publicly revealed they were in talks in October.

Vodafone will own 51% and Hutchison 49% of the combined group, which will be led by current Vodafone UK boss Ahmed Essam, the companies said. Current Three UK finance chief Darren Purkis will take the same role in the new group, they said.

Seeking to win the support of politicians and the competition regulator, the two groups said they would invest 11 billion pounds ($14 billion) in Britain over 10 years to create what they described as "one of Europe's most advanced standalone 5G networks".

($1 = 0.7910 pounds)

(Reporting by Paul Sandle in London and Clare Jim in Hong Kong, Editing by Kate Holton)