Airtel to raise USD 3 billion via equity dilution and debt funding avenues

NEW DELHI: Faced with liabilities of as much as Rs 35,500 crore arising from the Supreme Court’s ruling on adjusted gross revenues (AGR), Bharti Airtel’s board of directors has decided to raise $3 billion (around Rs 21,500 crore) through equity dilution and debt funding avenues.

The company has been directed by the Supreme Court to pay up pending AGR dues, estimated by the Department of Telecom at Rs 35,586 crore, to the Central government within three months of the October 24 verdict. The large provisioning requirements needed for such a payout had pushed the company into its largest quarterly loss of Rs 23,045 crore during the second quarter of the current financial year.