Vodafone Concept in talks with authorities on AGR aid: CEO Akshaya Moondra
NEW DELHI: Vodafone Concept CEO Akshaya Moondra, throughout an investor name following the discharge of the corporate’s This autumn and FY25 monetary outcomes, confirmed that the corporate is actively engaged in discussions with the federal government concerning the long-standing Adjusted Gross Income (AGR) challenge. He famous that there are not any present restrictions that forestall the federal government from extending assist.“So far as the federal government aid is anxious, I feel we’re engaged with the federal government… what the federal government will do, I can not touch upon their behalf. However undoubtedly publish the judgment, we proceed with our engagement with the federal government to discover a resolution to the AGR matter,” Moondra mentioned, as quoted by information company PTI.Highlighting broader challenges within the telecom sector, Moondra identified that India continues to have the bottom Common Income Per Person (ARPU) globally, whereas trade returns stay beneath the price of capital. He referred to as on the pressing want for a revised pricing framework, stating that larger information consumption must be charged proportionally more- a departure from the present pricing mannequin.Moondra additionally referred to the 2021 telecom reforms, emphasizing that regardless of Public Curiosity Litigations (PILs) within the Supreme Court docket, the court docket upheld that coverage choices fall inside the authorities’s area. He urged this precedent signifies the federal government retains the authority to implement aid measures for the sector.The CEO additional clarified the federal government’s place concerning its 49 per cent stake in Vodafone Concept, acquired via a current dues-to-equity conversion. “There is no such thing as a intent to take up any board seat, the shareholding of the federal government is a consequence of the federal government offering assist in decreasing dues,” he said.This clarification good points significance as Vodafone Concept seeks a waiver of roughly Rs 30,000 crore in AGR dues. The corporate is grappling with statutory liabilities and a declining subscriber base. In accordance with TRAI information, VI misplaced 6.47 lakh cellular customers in April, bringing its complete to twenty.47 crore subscribers.Following the Supreme Court docket’s dismissal of its AGR aid plea, Vodafone Concept knowledgeable the Division of Telecommunications that its operations past FY26 can be unsustainable with out authorities intervention, a key concern in ongoing discussions with banks concerning future funding.Additionally learn: ‘No extra conversion of fairness in Voda-Concept’Financially, the corporate reported a diminished internet lack of Rs 7,166.1 crore for the March quarter. Its income for Q4FY25 rose 3.8 per cent year-on-year to Rs 11,013.5 crore. For the complete fiscal yr, losses narrowed to Rs 27,383.4 crore from Rs 31,238.4 crore in FY24.To strengthen its monetary place, Vodafone Concept’s board has accredited a fundraising plan of as much as Rs 20,000 crore, topic to regulatory and shareholder approvals. The capital infusion could also be raised “both by the use of additional public supply or non-public placement or via another permissible mode as could also be thought-about acceptable,” the corporate mentioned.
