The litigation against telecommunications group MTN contesting the award of its 2005 telecommunications operating licence in Iran has been dismissed with costs.
Since 2013, MTN and some of its subsidiaries have been defending the legal action instituted by Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri and Turkcell's wholly owned subsidiary East Asian Consortium (EAC) in the High Court of South Africa.
Turkcell and EAC sought substantial damages from MTN amid allegations of impropriety in the award of the first private mobile telecommunications licence in Iran.
Istanbul-based Turkcell formally withdrew as a plaintiff in the South African High Court in November 2020, leaving EAC as the sole plaintiff in the action against MTN.
According to a judgment handed down by the High Court of South Africa on November 30, EAC's action against MTN has been dismissed with costs, putting an end to the Turkcell litigation, the group said in an update to shareholders on Thursday.
“MTN is delighted at the outcome as it has consistently maintained that the Turkcell litigation was without merit.”