Shareholders in India's Reliance Communications have approved a proposed acquisition of Sistema Shyam Teleservices (SSTL).
The company announced in a stock exchange filing that investors attending a shareholder meeting nearly unanimously voted in favor of the proposed transaction.
In addition to RCom shareholder approval, the proposed $690 million merger has also been cleared by the Competition Commission of India, Rajasthan High Court, Bombay High Court and the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
SSTL shareholders are scheduled to vote whether to give their own approval on March 18. An affirmative vote would clear the way for RCom to apply for merger documents from the Department of Telecom.
RCom announced in November that it had arranged to take over SSTL in exchange for a 10% stake in the combined company, in a deal expected to be valued at around $690 million.
If the deal goes through it will be the first significant example of telecom market consolidation since 2009.
An acquisition will give RCom access to valuable 850-MHz 4G spectrum, as well as a mobile business with around 9 million subscribers. SSTL offers services under the MTS India brand.