June 3, 2026, St. Petersburg
Beeline has announced the signing of a strategic partnership with Atlas LLC and its participation in the large-scale industry project, the Trans-Eurasian Fiber-Optic Line TEA NEXT. The agreement was signed at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2026).
The Trans-Eurasian Fiber-Optic Communication Line will connect the western and eastern borders of Russia, with connections to the country’s largest cities and access points to the borders with Mongolia and China, as well as a coastal station for submarine communication lines in Nakhodka.
Under the agreement with Atlas LLC, Beeline is entering into a long-term lease for the eastern segment, which runs through the Ural, Siberian, and Far Eastern federal districts. This will significantly enhance the reliability and fault tolerance of Beeline’s network, create additional opportunities for developing its backbone transport infrastructure, reduce costs associated with its modernization and capacity expansion. This is particularly important given the aging of backbone fiber-optic communication lines in Russia, especially in remote eastern territories.
This new high-speed communication line will establish the technological foundation for handling growing domestic traffic, developing cloud services and digital platforms, implementing partner projects, and meeting the increasing demand for Europe-Asia transit with minimal latency, high availability, and enhanced fault tolerance.
Sergey Bykov, Vice President for Operator Business at Beeline:
"VimpelCom PJSC continues to systematically implement its strategy, a key focus of which is the development of partnerships. Collaboration with Atlas LLC and participation in the key industry project TEA NEXT through a long-term lease of new fiber will open up additional opportunities for Beeline to develop its backbone transport network, significantly improve the reliability and fault tolerance of its channels, and create the technological foundation for further development and growth.
For Beeline, this is not just an infrastructure project, but a strategic investment in the development of its own communication line in the eastern direction and in strengthening the technological independence of its network. We are systematically increasing the capacity and resilience of our infrastructure to ensure a high level of service quality and to be prepared for the growing needs of businesses, the operator community, and the digital economy as a whole."
Alexander Ratushny, CEO of Atlas LLC:
"Atlas highly values the collaborative work of the two companies' teams, which has made it possible to establish the basis for a long-term partnership. The signing of the agreement with Beeline confirms the demand for modern backbone infrastructure and its key role in ensuring the sustainable development of Russia's telecommunications market. For us, signing this agreement with Beeline is an important milestone in the implementation of the TEA NEXT project and evidence of trust from one of the country's largest communication operators. We are confident that the partnership will contribute to the further development of digital infrastructure and improve the quality of services for consumers and businesses."
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Atlas LLC was established in 2020 by Rostelecom as a special purpose project company to implement the "New Trans-Eurasian Fiber-Optic Communication Line" project (TEA NEXT). The TEA NEXT infrastructure is the foundation for the development of next-generation domestic and international backbone transit communication networks over the next 25 years. The project is included in the "Comprehensive Plan for the Development of Transport, Energy, Telecommunications, Social, and Other Infrastructure for the Period up to 2036," approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated August 29, 2025. The company's current shareholders are Rostelecom and Alfa-Bank.
VimpelCom PJSC (Beeline brand) is one of Russia's largest digital companies. In addition to communication services, it is developing its own expertise in fintech, AI-based solutions for medicine and education, video and audio analytics services, smart city solutions, and sustainable development.
