Bharti Airtel signs Rs 1,004 crore spectrum trading agreement with Reliance Jio

Bharti Airtel on Friday, August 13, declared completion of its pact to transfer 'Right to Use' of its 800 MHz spectrum in three circles to Reliance Jio Infocomm. deal with Mukesh Ambani-led telecom operator was closed by Airtel at 1004.8 crore. Along with spending sum to secure spectrum, Reliance Jio also took over future liabilities amounting to Rs 469.3 crore relating to same.

Airtel and Jio signs spectrum tring agreement

agreement sees Reliance Jio has w taken control of Bharti Airtel’s spectrum in Andhra Presh, Delhi, and Mumbai circles at an aggregate value of Rs 1,497 crore. Jio w holds 10MHz, 10MHz and 15MHz, respectively in se circles. agreement me currently waits for necessary statutory approvals. deal also reflected on stock market, as Bharti Airtel’s shares touched a record high of 638.60 on Friday.

According to market experts, deal comes as a great one as pact is useful to both companies involved. Bharti Airtel, which h earlier acquired this spectrum from Tata, h left it unutilised. For Reliance Jio, deal gives an upper hand over its competitors as lower spectrum bands like 800 Mhz and 900 Mhz provide greater indoor cover, which network could use for better service. Airtel MD and CEO, Gopal Vittal, stated that sale of 800 MHz blocks unlocks value of an unutilised spectrum for company, and is in line with company’s strategy.

Supreme Court dismisses plea filed by Bharti Airtel citing error in AGR calculation

After reserving order on AGR dues last year, Supreme Court on July 23 dismissed applications filed by Bharti Airtel seeking a re-computation of justed Gross Revenue (AGR). apex court observed that recalculation was prohibited based on earlier order. Last year in September, top court h allowed telecommunication companies to pay AGR dues in a staggered manner however later companies including Airtel and Vodafone Idea alleged errors in calculations me by Department of Telecommunications (DoT). Reliance Jio Infocomm is only phone company that has met Supreme Court’s justed gross revenue (AGR) dues deline, paying Rs 195 crore in January 2020.

SC's 2019 order on AGR dues

In October 2019, apex court ruled in favour of Centre allowing DoT to recover Rs 92,641 crore in total AGR from operators in India. telcos paid  license fee and spectrum us charges (SUC) on AGR which amount to Rs 92,641 crore. SC ruled that DOT's claims on definition of AGR as well as applicability of interest, penalty, and interest on penalty are both valid and that operators are liable to pay 100 per cent of demand that DoT has raised.

IM: PTI