Monday, July 30, 2012 -
MTS’ Uzbek subsidiary Uzdonrobita had its operating license suspended on Monday for a further 90 days by Uzbek authorities.
The Uzbek Agency for Communication and Information originally suspended Uzdonrobita’s license for 10 days on July 17, citing “repeated and systematic major violations.”
State authorities earlier this month accused MTS of operating some 200 base stations without proper authorization.
The government body allegedly caught the firm violating the rules during an investigation that followed the failure by MTS to secure extensions to permits for the bases.
The company switched off those transmission stations on orders from the agency, resulting in service problems for over nine million subscribers in some parts of the country.
This is the second time MTS has faced trouble with Central Asian governments in the past two years. In December 2010, the Turkmen government unexpectedly yanked the license held by the firm, forcing it to leave the country and leaving millions of subscribers without service.
MTS is only now re-starting operations in Turkmenistan following that hiatus, which MTS says cost the company $160 million.