Alfa to outbid TeliaSonera for Turkcell stake?

According to reports on Bloomberg, Russian telecoms holding company Alfa is prepared to outbid TeliaSonera for a 27% stake in Turkcell. TeliaSonera has already offered to pay the Cukurova Group USD3.1 billion for the stake, which would raise its holding to 64%. Alfa Telecom, which owns shares in VimpelCom amd MegaFon, Russia’s second and third largest cellcos, has not made public the exact amount of its offer. TeliaSonera has a right of first refusal according to the original shareholders agreement. Cukurova is under pressure to sell its stake quickly so that it can repay a USD5 billion debt to the Turkish government.