STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Sept. 17, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- TeliaSonera (Nasdaq:TLSN) (Other OTC:SNEAF) (Other OTC:SNRAF) (LSE:TLSNq) Finland intends in three consecutive steps to acquire full ownership in the Auria Group, a fixed line telecom operator in the Southwest of Finland. The Auria Group consists of Loimaan Seudun Puhelin (LSP) and its subsidiary Turku Telecom which both are using the Auria brand. Therefore TeliaSonera Finland today announces as the first step the increase of its shareholding in LSP from 29 percent to 40 percent. In order to boost synergies, TeliaSonera Finland has also sold its fixed line business in the numbering areas of Turku and Pori, and Aland to Auria for EUR 22 million.
Following LSP's Extraordinary General Meeting in September TeliaSonera expects to increase its holding in LSP to 55 percent, approximately an investment of 22.4 million for TeliaSonera.
TeliaSonera Finland will then at the beginning of October launch a share offer in total of 42 million to the owners in LSP with the target of increasing the holding in LSP to 100 percent.
The Auria Group has 130,000 fixed customers in Southwest Finland. During 2002 the Auria Group had 133 million in revenues, 45 million in EBITDA, CAPEX of 12 million and 719 employees.
"The arrangement supports TeliaSonera Finland's strategy of profitable growth. Our fixed network customer volume will grow by nearly a fifth, and TeliaSonera Finland's net sales will increase by about seven per cent. Auria and TeliaSonera Finland is a good match. The agreement makes the Auria group a subsidiary of TeliaSonera Finland allowing the regional leader to offer customers local, national and international services from a single service provider, and tap TeliaSonera Finland's broad range of products, services, platforms and pricing models." says Anni Vepsalainen, President of TeliaSonera Finland.
"We improve the competitiveness of both Auria and TeliaSonera Finland. The arrangement makes Auria a stronger company. We'll continue to develop our operations in line with our growth strategy. Greater resources and volumes will certainly benefit our customers. We help our customers to succeed in the information society; we offer them all data and telecommunications services from one and the same place," describes Eero Sinkkonen, Managing Director of Auria.
TeliaSonera Finland and Auria will hold a press conference today at the Turku Fair and Congress Center in Turku at 2.30 pm Finnish time.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in the press release relating to future status or circumstances, including future performance, other trend projections and other benefits of the transaction are forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. There can be no assurance that actual results will not differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward- looking statements due to many factors, many of which are outside the control of TeliaSonera
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