Telefonica SA's (TEF) chief operating officer, Julio Linares, said Monday the European Commission has a unique opportunity to change its regulatory policies.

"The European Commission is renewing the mandate of its telecommunications directorate... it's an opportunity to reorient (the regulatory model) in favor of different objectives," Linares said in a telecommunications conference.

Linares said the telecoms industry in Europe would lose out on EUR40 billion in revenue between 2007 and 2012 because of caps the European Commission has put on roaming charges and mobile termination rates, or the tariffs telecom operators apply to each other to connect calls.

He added companies affected by regulation would invest EUR6 billion less in the period due to the changes in the regulatory framework.

Telefonica is Europe's largest telecommunications company by market capitalization.

Company Web site: www.telefonica.com

-By Jason Sinclair, Dow Jones Newswires, 34 913958127, jason.sinclair@dowjones.com