VEON says VimpelCom repatriates $200 mln from Uzbekistan

MOSCOW, Dec 22 (PRIME) -- Russian mobile operator VimpelCom has successfully repatriated a net amount of approximately U.S. $200 million from its wholly owned Uzbek subsidiary Unitel, which brought a foreign currency exchange loss of some $49 million, VimpelCom’s sole owner VEON said on Friday in a statement.

The loss will be recorded as a finance cost in the 2017 income statement of the company.

“The repatriation of cash from Uzbekistan for the first time is an important milestone for VEON, further enhancing the cash upstreaming capability of the group and allowing Unitel to honor its global payment obligations necessary for ongoing operations,” VEON’s Chief Financial Officer Trond Westlie said.

“Our Uzbekistan operation has reported encouraging results in local currency this year and we remain committed to the business and further investments in the country.”

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