3 Jun 2010 12:38

MTS repays EUR 413 mln credit to EBRD bank consortium

MOSCOW. June 3 (Interfax) - Russian 'big-3' telecommunications operator Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) has paid off EUR 413 million in debt incurred under credits from a bank consortium headed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), an MTS statement says.

Also in this consortium are Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) and European Investment Bank (EIB). The credit agreements were struck in June of last year, and the monies raised therefrom put into developing 2G and 3G networks in MTS markets.

MTS got EUR 218 from the EBRD in two tranches: EUR 115 million for seven years and EUR 103 million for three years. NIB provided EUR 80 million in two tranches of EUR 40 million each, one for seven and the other for three years. The EIB extended EUR 115 million for seven years.

MTS has also announced the reduction to 8.99% of annual interest on a Bank of Moscow credit line of 22 billion rubles (from 10.25%).

MTS is the largest cellular operator in Russia and greater Commonwealth of Independent States, with over 100 million subscribers in Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Armenia, and Belarus. Its main shareholder is AFK Sistema .