Norway’s Telenor has emerged as the latest telco to be investigated in relation to activities in Uzbekistan, following MTS, VimpelCom and TeliaSonera.
A Telenor spokesperson confirmed that the company has been contacted by Norwegian authorities in…
Norway’s Telenor has emerged as the latest telco to be investigated in relation to activities in Uzbekistan, following MTS, VimpelCom and TeliaSonera.
A Telenor spokesperson confirmed that the company has been contacted by Norwegian authorities in relation to an investigation at VimpelCom’s Amsterdam headquarters carried out by Dutch authorities. “[Telenor] has been asked to provide information related to VimpelCom,” he said.
Telenor owns 35.7% of Russia-focussed VimpelCom’s shares and 43% of its voting rights. In addition, Telenor CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas sits on VimpelCom’s board, while the CEO of VimpelCom, Jo Lunder, is a former Telenor executive.
VimpelCom, in which Russia’s Alfa Group has the largest stake, confirmed yesterday that it is under investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission and Dutch authorities over its operations in Uzbekistan.
The Telenor spokesperson stressed that the Norwegian telco is not part of the investigation of VimpelCom, but will contribute information where possible.
He declined to comment further on a report in local newspaper Dagens Naeringsliv (DN) that said officials from Norwegian crime unit Okokrim visited Telenor’s Fornebu headquarters this week in connection with the VimpelCom investigation.
The paper quoted Okorim’s lead attorney Marianne Djupesland as saying its corruption team is helping Swiss and Dutch authorities with an investigation directed at VimpelCom and others.
Also yesterday, Sweden’s TeliaSonera issued a short statement saying two of its Dutch holding companies, which own its Uzbek operations, are subject to a preliminary investigation concerning bribery and money laundering.
Meanwhile, Swiss authorities revealed that the nation’s federal prosecutor is investigating Gulnara Karimova, daughter of the Uzbek president, in relation to money laundering accusations which may stem from earlier illegal activity in the Uzbek telecoms market.
Norwegian press note that VimpelCom and TeliaSonera are among telcos to have bought their Uzbek mobile licences from Gibraltar-registered company Takilant, which has been linked to Karimova.
DN quoted Telenor officials as saying VimpelCom is not in “the same situation” as TeliaSonera regarding Uzbekistan, without elaborating.
Yesterday, a VimpelCom spokesperson declined to comment on the investigations, other than to say the company is not facing charges at this point.
Separately, Russia’s largest mobile operator MTS has been embroiled in a long dispute with Uzbek authorities in connection with its Uzbek operations, which had its assets confiscated in December last year.
