By the end of the year, Vodafone Idea is trying to raise to Rs 40,000 crore by selling properties, raising debt, equity capital, and the capital coming from the merger between Infratel and Indus. A closer look shows a break-up. The company aims to increase the sale of its assets to Rs 10,000 crore via. CNBC-TV18 heard that both its fiber optic cable business and its data center business were nodded by the board of the telecom company.
The organization has already declared its plan to raise Rs 25,000 crore through equity and debt. By selling its properties, if the company can raise Rs 10,000 crore as targeted, it will be able to raise Rs 35,000 crore by the end of the year.
It tends to acquire funds between Rs 7,500 crore to Rs 8,000 crore for fiber-optic companies and the ongoing money that would be generated from the selling of its data centre business, “said a source who did not want to be named.”
As far as the fiber optic cable company is concerned, people who are aware add that the board has given a nod to the auction, but it is not pleased with the bids so far from Brookfield and KKR. Thus in the coming months/weeks, the management will search for more financial or strategic investors.
CNBC-TV18 was the first to report on KKR and Brookfield being in the race for Vodafone Idea’s fiber optic cable company.
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“The company should buy a 100 % stake of the optical fibre cable business from a strategic firm,” added the sources. Meanwhile, through the merger of Infratel and Indus Tower, the company has already acquired Rs 4,000.
We believe that VIL will still find it difficult to service AGR repayments and spectrum liabilities unless it can raise USD 3-4 billion over the next 18 months and take up its ARPUs to INR200 at least.
Conclusion:
Though Vodafone Idea has earned a breather from the Supreme Court on the timeline of paying its AGR dues exceeding Rs 58,000 crore, industry watchers believe that a substantial capital infusion is required and that a reduction strategy clubbed with a tariff increase is clear to be able to survive in this climate.
