MTS Loses GSM License in Turkmenistan

Just a couple of days after Russia's MTS brought a controlling stake in a Turkmenistan GSM network operator, the local telecoms regulator has revoked its license. On June 27, 2005 MTS announced its acquisition of a 51% controlling stake in BCTI, a company incorporated in Texas, USA, whose branch provides mobile phone services in the Republic of Turkmenistan.

The following day MTS received official notice from the Communications Ministry of Turkmenistan stating that it had revoked the license held by BCTI to provide mobile services in the country. Under these circumstances, the company is currently unable to provide mobile phone services legally to its customers in Turkmenistan.

MTS says that it believes that the Communications Ministry of Turkmenistan has no legal grounds to revoke the license, and the Company will take all appropriate measures to resolve the situation and ensure the integrity of its subsidiary's operations in Turkmenistan.

Commenting on this development, Vassily Sidorov, MTS' President and CEO, said: "We are very surprised by the decision to revoke BCTI's license. We made several attempts to clarify the details of the acquisition with the Government of Turkmenistan, and we believe that the Ministry's decision could be based on a simple misunderstanding. We are seeking a quick resolution of this matter in order for us to realize our plans to invest in the telecommunications infrastructure of Turkmenistan to build a successful mobile operations and benefit the Turkmen economy."

Posted to the site on 30th June 2005