MOSCOW, Nov 13 (Prime-Tass) -- Altimo, the telecommunications arm of Russian financial and industrial holding Alfa Group, plans to open a representative office in Vietnam and is looking into investing in the Vietnamese telecom sector, Altimo's Vice President Kirill Babayev said, Kommersant business daily reported Monday.
"We decided ? to analyze the local mobile market, establish contacts with local governmental bodies and the business community. We are considering the possibility of long-term investments in the country's telecom sector," Babayev said.
At the moment the Vietnamese mobile market is split between three GSM mobile operators, VinaPhone, MobiFone and Viettel, and one CDMA operator, S-Fone, the daily reported.
VinaPhone and MobiFone are owned by the government and Viettel is owned by Vietnam Military Electronics and Telecommunications Co. S-Fone is owned by South Korean consortium SLD Telecom, the daily reported.
The government is expected to place shares of VinaPhone and MobiFone on the local market in 2007, while Vietnam Military Electronics and Telecommunications Co. may sell a 49% stake in Viettel, also in 2007, the daily reported.
VinaPhone has about 2.1 million users, MobiPhone has 1.5 million users and Viettel has 70,000 users, the daily reported.
Altimo controls a 32.9% voting stake in Russia's second largest mobile operator VimpelCom and a 29% stake in U.S.-registered telecommunications operator Golden Telecom. It also indirectly owns about 44% in Ukraine's largest mobile operator Kyivstar, a 25.1% stake in Russia?s third largest mobile operator MegaFon and a 13.22% stake in Turkey's largest mobile operator Turkcell.
Vietnam's population amounts to about 80 million people and mobile service penetration has been recently growing by 50% on the year, analysts said, the daily reported.
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Posted to the site on 13th November 2006
Posted to: www.cellular-news.com/story/20393.php