Russia’s Rostelecom is set to receive an Rbs9bn (US$273m) loan from Gazprombank.
A spokesperson for the state-controlled telco said proceeds from the short-term financing will be used for different purposes. These include the “obligatory buyout”…
Russia’s Rostelecom is set to receive an Rbs9bn (US$273m) loan from Gazprombank.
A spokesperson for the state-controlled telco said proceeds from the short-term financing will be used for different purposes. These include the “obligatory buyout” of shares from minority investors who opposed, or did not vote on, Rostelecom’s merger with state-controlled telecoms holding Svyazinvest and 20 subsidiaries. Ordered by presidential decree in March 2012, the merger process is still ongoing.
Rostelecom shareholders voted on the merger at an EGM in June. Nearly 62% of shareholders attended the meeting, with 97.7% of these voting in favour.
Commenting on the shareholder vote at the time, Rostelecom CEO Sergey Kalugin said the company was approaching the end of the second phase of its reorganisation. He noted that the only steps left to complete were the obligatory share buyout and the legal reorganisation, “when the merged companies will cease to exist as separate legal entities, and their assets and liabilities will transfer to Rostelecom.”
Kalugin reiterated that the reorganisation is designed to eliminate cross-ownership between Rostelecom and Svyazinvest and allow for a more transparent, simplified shareholder structure.
Earlier this month, Rostelecom arranged short-term revolving credit facilities of Rbs4.8bn (US$145.6m) with Raiffeisenbank and Citibank. At the time, a company spokesperson said proceeds would be used to finance operational activities and fill short-term liquidity gaps.
