Vimpelcom to take $1 bln loan in mid-Sept- source

MOSCOW, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Vimpelcom (VIP.N), Russia's second-largest mobile phone operator, will start syndication of a three-year, $1 billion loan in mid-September, a source close to the issue told Reuters on Monday.

The loan will be priced at 1.8 percent over LIBOR, the source said.

Banking sources told Reuters earlier in August that Vimpelcom planned to use the money for general corporate purposes.

Vimpelcom's last loan was a $3.5 billion facility that was signed in April. That deal backed the firm's $4.3 billion acquisition of fixed-line operator Golden Telecom.

Private equity group Alfa and Norway's Telenor (TEL.OL) own strategic stakes in New York-listed Vimpelcom.

(Reporting by Dmitry Sergeyev, writing by Tanya Mosolova, editing by Simon Shuster)