OREANDA-NEWS. December 23, 2009. MegaFon won’t buy Sinterra, as uncertainty surrounding the future of the cellular operator looks to be a hurdle for the deal. MegaFon’s BoD will discuss in absentia the acquisition of Sinterra at the end of 2009 or in early 2010, but the decision will most likely be negative, a source close to the mobile company’s board told Interfax. According to the same source, representatives of all MegaFon shareholders (TeliaSonera, Alisher Usmanov and Alfa Group) intend to vote down the deal.

At present, the shareholders have no consensus with regard to the future of MegaFon itself and under the circumstances it is unreasonable to acquire Sinterra, the source noted. For the record, in late May 2009 MegaFon applied to the Federal Anti-Trust Service (FAS) seeking authorization to buy 100% of Sinterra and got approval in July. In the middle of August the mobile major signed a relevant memorandum with Promsvyazcapital, Sinterra’s owner, gaining the right to hold exclusive negotiations.

The memorandum expired on October 10, but MegaFon is still in talks with Promsvyazcapital, said MegaFon’s Eurobond report dated December 18. In late November the company’s general director Sergei Soldatenkov told Interfax that MegaFon is still interested in buying Sinterra. MegaFon is the only Big 3 operator that has not yet gained access to fixed-line assets.