Swedish telecommunications firm TeliaSonera AB (TLSNY.PK,0H6X.L) Thursday said it has signed an agreement with Kazakhtelecom to acquire 49 percent of the shares in GSM Kazakhstan LLP, operating under the brand Kcell, for $1.519 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2012.
TeliaSonera has also agreed, on certain conditions, to sell 25 percent of the shares except one share in Kcell in an initial public offering. The IPO is expected to be completed during 2012. Depending on the share movement, TeliaSonera may have to make an additional payment to Kazakhtelecom.
At present, Fintur Holdings has a 51 percent stake in GSM Kazakhstan and Kazakhtelecom holds 49 percent. Fintur Holdings B.V. is owned by TeliaSonera with a 58.55 stake and Turkcell owns 41.45 percent and the Swedish telecom firm already has management and operational control in Kcell.
When both steps of the transaction are completed, TeliaSonera's effective ownership in Kcell will be 61.74 percent.
Tero Kivisaari, President of TeliaSonera Eurasia, said, "This agreement is another step in the execution of our strategy of increasing ownership in core holdings...Kcell is a clear market leader in Kazakhstan, the largest market in Central Asia, and has shown remarkable growth over the years."
TeliaSonera shares are currently down 0.86 percent in Stockholm at 45 Swedish kronor.
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