On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved the sale of Nokia’s share in a joint venture to Rostelecom, marking Nokia’s exit from the Russian market. The joint venture, known as RTC Network Technologies, was established six years ago but has been inactive following Nokia’s decision to withdraw from Russia in 2022.
Nokia’s exit from Russia was part of a larger trend of Western companies leaving the country in response to the conflict in Ukraine. As a result, many companies have had to deal with legally existing entities in Russia that no longer have business operations.
Rostelecom, a subsidiary of the Russian state-owned telecom operator, will acquire Nokia’s minority stake in the joint venture. This transaction was approved by Putin in accordance with Russian legislation that requires the president to approve business transactions of Western companies leaving strategic industries in Russia. The completion of the transaction is expected to happen soon, according to Rostelecom.
The joint venture between Nokia and Rostelecom was established in 2018 with the goal of investing in technologies related to next-generation mobile phone networks and the Internet of Things. However, with Nokia’s withdrawal from Russia, the joint venture has ceased all operations and existed only on paper.
In April 2022, Nokia announced that it would suspend all product deliveries and new business in Russia and begin moving its research and development activities out of the country. The company made a provision of around one hundred million euros for its financial results review for the first quarter of 2022 as a result of its exit from the Russian market.
