The long-running dispute over ownership of Turkcell, Turkey’s largest mobile operator, is reported to be nearing an end. According to a Wall Street Journal report, a Caribbean court could give its verdict as early as this month in a dispute between Russia’s Alfa (Altimo) and Sweden’s TeliaSonera on one side and Turkish conglomerate Cukurova Holding on the other. The two sides have been at loggerheads following a deal struck between Cukurova and Alfa in 2005. At a time when Cukurova was reportedly close to defaulting on a US$3 billion loan to the Turkish state, Alfa acquired shares from Cukurova, giving it an indirect 13 percent stake in Turkcell, and also loaned Cukurova US$1.7 billion, secured with a further 13.7 percent interest in the mobile firm. Alfa subsequently attempted to exercise its right to appropriate the shares in Turkcell that were security for the loan, sparking a series of court cases.

According to the report, the Antigua court is expected to announce its decision in the coming weeks, and legal experts see Alfa in a strong position. “Alfa has very reasonable prospects for a successful appeal,” said James Hilsdon, an expert on British Virgin Islands law who has followed the Alfa-Cukurova case. Winning the case would allow Altimo and TeliaSonera to pursue their long-term goal of merging their joint interests in Turkcell and Russian mobile operator MegaFon into a single firm, which would see them become the largest shareholder in both operators. However, the plan has also stumbled into problems in Russia. TeliaSonera and Altimo are currently appealing a successful legal move by AF Telecom (the second-largest shareholder in MegaFon) to block the two firms merging their Russian assets.