MOSCOW, March 19 (Reuters) - Russia's Vimpelcom isconsidering a refinancing plan to improve the capital structureof its Italian subsidiary Wind, the mobile phone operator saidon Wednesday.
The plan may include a cash injection of 500 million euros($695.7 million) by Vimpelcom, part-owned by Mikhail Fridman'sAltimo and Norway's Telenor, the company said.
"The aim of the refinancing plan is to provide (Vimpelcom)with significant interest cost savings, stronger cash flowgeneration, a deleveraging trajectory and an extended maturityprofile," the company said in a statement.
Vimpelcom bought Wind in 2011 in a deal which also saw ittake a 51 percent stake in Egypt-based Orascom Telecom for $6 billion. Vimpelcom has a total net debt of $22.6 billionaccording to its latest earnings report.
Vimpelcom has a total net debt of $22.6 billion according toits latest earnings report, of which Wind's debt accounts for$14.5 billion.
There has been media speculation that Vimpelcom will seek torefinance or merge Wind because Italy's mobile companies havefaced fierce price competition. Telecom Italia is theleading player in Italy's mobile phone market, followed byVodafone Italia, Vimpelcom's Wind and HutchisonWhampoa's 3 Italia.
Vimpelcom said in its statement on Wednesday that Wind isseeking lenders' consent to amend its lending agreement to allowthe financing plan to be implemented.
The amendments would include up to an additional 800 millioneuros of transaction costs, fees and expenses in debt incurrence to allow a refinancing of pay-in-kind notes guaranteed byWind's immediate parent.
($1 = 0.7188 euros) (Reporting by Megan Davies, editing by Jason Bush and LouiseHeavens)
Vodafone (VOD)