The Russian regional wireline and wireless operator Uralsvyazinform will complete the repayment of debts which are due this year, it has announced, though it is being forced to cut its investment plans for 2009. The telco, which is controlled by the state telecoms holding company Svyazinvest, has RUB4 billion (USD152.9 million) of financial obligations due for repayment this year, Reuters reports. CFO Valery Chernyshev says that current global economic crisis means that capital spending will be halved in 2009 compared with the RUB10 billion spend planned for this year; ‘We will invest only in the development of cellular and internet businesses. The programme of digitalisation (of local fixed line networks) will be temporarily halted,’ he said. Uralsvyazinform is expecting to see net profits of around RUB3.8 billion in 2008, up from RUB3.5 billion last year, with revenues expected to rise from RUB39 million to RUB43 million.

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