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Vodafone Idea to take 4-year reprieve on Rs 8,837-crore AGR dues |
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Mumbai: Vodafone Idea (Vi) will take a four-year moratorium on paying Rs 8,837 crore as AGR dues, in addition to the option it exercised last year. The telecom company also has the option to convert interest on the deferred amount into additional equity to the government.
The government will own 33 per cent stake in Vi after an earlier decision to convert interest with net present value of interest worth Rs 16,000 crore into equity. It may get a further 6-7 per cent stake if the company opts for conversion again, said a telecom sector analyst. Vi did not comment on what it plans.
Vi, in a late evening stock exchange notification on Wednesday, said that on June 15 it got a government letter offering four-year moratorium for all AGR dues up to financial year 2018-19.
The company's board has decided to defer the AGR (annual gross revenue) dues of Rs 8,837 crore, it said. The amount is subject to revision on account of disposal of representations and the final amount has to be paid in six equal installments after the end of the moratorium in March 2026.
Vi has to decide on conversion of interest on AGR dues in 90 days.
The government, last September, gave telecom firms an option to defer AGR payments for four years as a part of its telecom reforms package. Companies were also given the option to convert interest on these dues into equity for the government.
The package covered dues up to 2016-17 and that were a part of the Supreme Court order. Vi opted for a moratorium on these dues last October. Airtel too opted for a moratorium and Reliance Jio did not avail of the facility.
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