Reliance Jio prepays Rs30,791 cr deferred spectrum liabilities
24 Jan 2022
Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd (RJIL) on Wednesday said it has prepaid Rs30,791 crore (including accrued interest) to the Department of Telecom, clearing the entire deferred liabilities pertaining to spectrum acquired in auctions of year 2014, 2015, 2016 and the spectrum acquired in year 2021 through trading of right to use with Bharti Airtel Limited.
The company had acquired 585.3 MHz spectrum in the said auctions/trading.
RJIL had executed the first tranche of prepayment on the anniversary date in October 2021, pertaining to spectrum acquired in auction in the year 2016. Subsequent to DoT’s decision in December 2021 providing the telcos the flexibility to prepay their deferred spectrum liabilities on any date, RJIL has, in January 2022, prepaid the entire deferred liabilities acquired in auction in the year 2014 and 2015 as well as spectrum acquired through trading.
These liabilities were due in annual instalments from FY 2022-23 to 2034-2035 and carried interest rate between 9.30 per cent and 10 per cent per annum, with an average residual period of 7+ years.
The company estimates that the above prepayments will result in interest cost savings of around Rs1,200 crore annually, at the current interest rates.