S Korean KT agrees to sell stake in Russian co to VimpelCom

SEOUL, May 6 (Itar-Tass) -- KT, one of South Korea's major
telecommunication corporations, announced here on Friday that it had
agreed to sell its stake in the New Telephone Company (NTC) to the Russian
company. NTC is one of the major mobile and wire telephone communication
operators in Russia's Primorsky Territory.
The shares in the deal with VimpelCom, Russia's third largest mobile
company, amount to USD 346 million.
The South Korean company owns a 79.96-percent stake in NTC.
The deal is connected with the Russian operator's intention to expand
its presence in Russia's eastern part, the KT statement noted.
The South Korean partner bought the stake in NTC for USD 22 million in
1997. KT plans to use the sale proceeds to enlarge its investments in
South American, African and Eastern European countries.
NTC, which has 1.5 million users, received USD 110 million of incomes
in 2010. The profit accounted for 25 million, South Korea's Yonhap agency
reports.