In its announcement to the exchanges, Vodafone Idea said that the DoT has cut its outstanding AGR dues by 27% to ₹64,046 crore from the earlier figure of ₹87,695 crore.
Repayment Schedule
As part of its repayment schedule which the company has already made public, Vodafone Idea will pay at least ₹124 crore annually for a period of six years, starting March 2025 till March 2031.
This will be followed by annual payments of at least ₹100 crore over a four-year period from April 2031 to March 2035.
The remaining dues will then be paid in six annual installments of ₹10,608 crore each between March 2036 to March 2041. The company has not shared any revised payments schedule post the relief from the DoT.
Analysts Say
According to analysts who track the company, the relief amount falls short of market expectations, which had penciled in a 50% reduction or close to that.
Analysts say that the cash outflow due to AGR dues was anyway benign till financial year 2035.
They also go on to say that while there is some relief on the AGR front, Vodafone Idea still has sizeable spectrum dues.
Brokerage firm CLSA has an “outperform” rating on Vodafone Idea with a price target of ₹11.
It said that the AGR relief will boost Vodafone Idea’s prospects of a planned fund raising.
Citi continues to maintain a “high-risk buy” on Vodafone Idea with a price target of ₹14.
“With this chapter of regulatory uncertainty now largely behind it, we believe Vodafone Idea is better positioned to close its pending ₹25,000 crore bank debt raise, which would in turn, enable it to commence execution of its three-year capex plan worth ₹45,000 crore,” Citi said, adding that the closure of this debt funding will be a key monitorable.
Spectrum Liabilities
Vodafone Idea has spectrum liabilities to the tune of ₹49,000 crore, which need to be repaid over the next three years. This includes ₹7,000 crore this year, ₹15,000 crore in financial year 2028 and ₹27,000 crore in financial year 2029.
This figure is also just part of the total spectrum debt, which currently stands at ₹1.2 lakh crore.
Shares of Vodafone Idea are trading 5.1% higher on Monday at ₹10.74. The stock is up 22% in the last one month.
