GT said in a statement that the claims were brought September 25. On October 4, Sovintel submitted in court a suit appealing the tax claims. A preliminary hearing took place November 8, and the company expects the main hearing to be held in December 2006.
"At the present time, the company does not expect an unfavorable outcome in this case," GT said, adding that a Moscow bank gave the company a bank guarantee worth $20 million in connection with the case.
Golden Telecom also does not rule out tax claims for the first nine months of 2006, worth $8.5 million. The company said that it has a good chance to contest the claims in court, but was not completely assured it will be able to do so.
Earlier, it was reported that tax claims for 2002-2003 worth $1.9 million were brought against Sovintel in February 2006, but that the company was able to contest them in court.
Golden Telecom provides integrated telecommunications and Internet services in the major cities of Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. Its main shareholders are Altimo, with 29% of its stock, Telenor, with 20%, and Rostelecom, with 11%.
