www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Net loss of USD 26.1 million for the fourth quarter has been reported by Russian and CIS mobile operator MTS because of one-time charges for its takeover of fixed-line operator Comstar-UTS.

The company made an investment of USD 368 million and another USD 86 million was taken for obsolete equipment and expenses related to the acquisition of Comstar and tax provisions. MTS finished 2009 with USD 2.5 billion in cash and its net debt increased to USD 5.59 billion. 10.1 percent decrease in the OIBDA going down to USD 1.19 billion has also been posted.

However, a rise in the subscriber base has been enjoyed which increased from 101.37 million in September 2009 to 102.36 million users at the end of the fourth quarter. For the future, the company has expressed its optimism regarding economic upturn predicting mid to high single-digit revenue growth in local currencies. Increased number of fixed and mobile subscribers accompanied by increased sale of handsets in its home market in Russia has been attributed as a reason behind the profitable future.