Yerevan, November 4 /Mediamax/. Russia’s number two mobile phone firm Vimpelcom outbid Abu Dhabi-based Etisalat and Russian conglomerate Sistema to buy Armenian Armentel for 382 million euros ($488 million), Vimpelcom said on November 3.

Vimpelcom said in a statement that it had signed a deal to buy 90 percent of Armentel from Greece’s largest telecoms operator OTE for 341.9 million euros for the stake and assume around 40 million euros in net debt and obligations.

Armentel is a fixed-line operator in Armenia with mobile licences on the GSM and CDMA standards. It has 600,000 fixed-line subscribers and 400,000 GSM clients.

"With approximately 40 percent mobile market share, Armentel occupies a strong position in the Armenian market and we will work to enhance the position," the statement quoted Vimpelcom Chief Executive Alexander Izosimov as saying.

"It is a wonderful deal," said Deutsche UFG analyst Alexei Yakovitsky, adding that Armentel was acquired at 6 times 2005 EBITDA. "This is very cheap."