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Kumar Mangalam Birla has told the government that he is willing to offer his stake in Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL) to any state-owned or ‘domestic financial entity’ to keep the stressed telecom company afloat. Birla, VIL’s promoter and chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, suggested a letter to union cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba on June 7.
VIL has a debt of around Rs 1.8 trillion, including deferred spectrum obligations and adjusted gross revenue liabilities. Its board had last September announced a plan to raise Rs 25,000 crore, but investors have not been forthcoming in the absence of government support.
Birla’s letter highlighted the need for urgent measures from the government while offering to control the company. “It is with a sense of duty towards 27 crore Indians connected by VIL, I am more than willing to hand over my stake in the company to any entity-public sector/government/domestic financial entity or any other that the government may consider worthy of keeping the company as a going concern,” Birla said in his letter.
Birla owns over 27 per cent stake in VIL, while Vodafone Plc holds around 44 per cent. The current market capitalization of VIL is over Rs 24,000 crore. The two promoters have decided against infusing fresh funds into the company. Vodafone Plc has already written off all its investment in VIL following continuous losses.
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