Vodafone Idea CEO Says Government Doesn't Want Duopoly in Telecom

Braving a mammoth Rs. 50,000 crores loss in Q2, Vodafone Idea on Friday said the government is clear that there would be no duopoly and it is in the process of filing a review petition.

In a conference call, the company senior management led by CEO said Ravinder Takkar further said Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL) has not accelerated payments to any bank.

"Government is clear that they want to see three private players and one public player. We are engaged with the government very positively and even before the Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) case there have been a constructive response from the government. The SC judgement on AGR has significant financial implications on the industry", the VIL CEO Ravinder Takkar said in the conference call.

He said the company has made representations to the government.

Vodafone on Thursday said unless the government gives relief to the sector, it will be difficult to remain a going concern.

The management of VIL said government wants a healthy telecom sector.

Takkar also said if the floor pricing of voice and data is done, it will be a big positive step for the industry, but it is for the government and regulator to decide.

On the operational side, he said that the exit of the high Average revenue per user (ARPU) customers continues and part of the capex for the current fiscal has now been pushed to the next fiscal. Currently, the focus is on integration and the company is on track to complete it by March 2020.

The stake monetisation of Indus Tower is under consideration, while the Indus Tower merger has got delayed, he said.

While Vodafone Idea reported a record loss of Rs. 50,921 crores for the September quarter, the highest ever for any Indian company in India, Bharti Airtel posted a loss of Rs. 23,044 crores for the quarter due to a Rs. 28,450 crores provision towards AGR dues.