Russian carrier VimpelCom is slimming down its operations, with the sale of operations in Egypt and North Korea to Weather Investments.
The carrier has spun off holdings in Egyptian carrier ECMS and North Korean operator Koryolink, some ten months after acquiring the businesses when it became majority shareholder in Orascom Telecom Holding, which handed it control of Wind Telecom.
Selling the companies was a key element in the Wind takeover, which completed in April 2011.
The move came a day after Norwegian telco Telenor ended a long-running dispute over control of VimpelCom by acquiring an additional 234 million preferred shares from Weather Investments for $374.4 million (€283 million).