ESU LLC, part of System Capital Management (SCM) and a majority shareholder in Ukrtelecom, has not agreed with some conclusions outlined in the inspection act of the State Property Fund of Ukraine (SPF) after inspection of the implementation of the privatization obligations to the national communications operator by ESU, the press service of ESU has reported.

According to the report, the inspection was started in May 2016. In February 2017, the fund tardily sent the inspection act where the fund did not confirm the implementation of over 50 obligations.

SCM became the holder of a controlling stake in Ukrtelecom in 2013 two years after the company was privatized. The group indirectly bought ESU LLC from the previous owners who took part in the privatization of Ukrtelecom in 2011 and signed the relevant agreement containing the above-mentioned obligations.

ESU believes that the key claims of the fund are linked to steps or neglecting by the previous owners of Ukrtelecom and the character of obligations they undertaken during the privatization.

The press service said that since the moment of Ukrtelecom joined SCM (October 2013), the national operator has shown stable financial results, profit and started the complete technical modernization of the telecom network with the attraction of international financial of $400 million. In addition, Ukrtelecom is the third largest taxpayer in the telecom sector of Ukraine. The company pays almost UAH 2 billion to the national budget every year.

Taking into account the character of the fund's claims and their relation to the steps of the previous owners of Ukrtelecom, ESU believes that comprise should be found in the implementation of the privatization obligations. The company is ready to protect its position in court if the fund files a claim to court.