Airtel prepays Rs 8,815 crores towards its spectrum dues linked to 2015 auction

Bharti Airtel has paid Rs 8,815 crores towards its spectrum dues to the department of Telecom, clearing a significant amount of its debt. These spectrum dues were linked to a 2015 auction.

These payments were set to be due in FY27 and FY28 as this prepayment marks Rs 24,334 crores of spectrum dues deferred liabilities cleared in the last 4 months by the company. These liabilities carry an interest rate of 10% and have been paid off through a combination of free cash reserves, equity proceeds and a lower cost debt of the same tenor.

In other news, the company is set to buy the 4.7% stake in Indus Towers from Vodafone Group Plc in a deal worth nearly Rs 2,388 crores. Currently Vodafone holds around 28% in Indus Towers while Airtel owns 42%. Indus Towers caters to all wireless telecom service providers in India.

Highlight by Aman Agarwal.