Telenor announced its opposition to Russian operator Vimpelcom going ahead with its proposed takeover of Weather Investments and much of Orascon Telecom. Telenor holds a 36 percent voting and 39.6 percent economic interest in VimpelCom. The announcement comes a day before Vimpelcom's board is expected to meet to approve the deal. Telenor said the proposed takeover of Weather is "not in the best interests of VimpelCom shareholders" and it plans to vote against the deal. While the company supports Vimpelcom's expansion, the current transction does not make "strategic or financial sense", Telenor said. Vimpelcom confirmed it received a letter from Telenor on its position, and would take into account all shareholders' interests when deciding on the deal. A person close to Telenor told the Financial Times that the company is concerned that Vimpelcom is overpaying for the assets, and the cash generated by Weather's main asset Wind may have to go to debt reduction rather than dividends. A source close to Altimo, Vimpelcom's other large shareholder, said Telenor was resisting a new shareholders agreement required for the deal. This could see Weather gain 2-3 seats on Vimpelcom's board.
