Big relief for Vodafone Idea: What is the new AGR payment plan; Vi shares jump

New Delhi: Debt-ridden Vodafone Idea has got a huge relief . The telecom company, which has been facing huge debts and AGR arrears for a long time, has received huge support from the government. The company's problems with AGR i.e. Adjusted Gross Revenue have been going on for many years. Due to this, the financial condition of the company continued to weaken and there were difficulties in expanding the network.

Vodafone Idea's stock jumped. The stock traded with over 4 per cent gains at Rs 11.98 at the time of writing this article. The closing price of the stock on the previous trading day was Rs 11.50.

Talking about the last 52 weeks, the minimum level of Vodafone Idea has been Rs 6.12 and the maximum level has been Rs 12.80. Today the stock witnessed tremendous turnover. Approximately 82 Crore 36 Lakhs shares were transacted and the total trade value was about Rs 973 crore.

Now Vodafone Idea has clarified that a new schedule of payment for its old AGR dues has been decided. With this, there will be no pressure on the company to pay huge sums of money suddenly. This decision comes at a time when the company is trying to manage its business and retain customers.

Vodafone Idea has informed that there will be no additional hike on the AGR arrears for the financial year 2006-07 to 2018-19 after 31 December 2025. That is, after this date the AGR amount will be frozen. According to the company, it will have to pay 124 million rupees every year in the next six years from March 2026 to March 2031.

Vodafone Idea said that after the first six years, the amount of payment will be reduced a bit. From March 2032 to March 2035, the company will have to pay Rs 100 million every year. Any AGR arrears remaining thereafter will be paid in six equal annual installments between March 2036 and March 2041. This way the company has got a longer time, so that it can handle its cash flow better.

The company has also said that a committee will be formed by the Department of Telecommunications i.e. Dot. This committee will review the AGR dues again. Whatever decision the committee takes, it will be considered final. With this, the company hopes that some old errors related to AGR can be relieved.

AGR (Adjusted Gross Revenue) is the income on which telecom companies have to pay license fees and spectrum charges to the government. This includes not only income from telecom services, but also non-telecom income like interest, rent and property sale. Earlier there was a dispute over this definition, which led to huge arrears on companies.

Add TV9 English As A Trusted Source

Vodafone Idea has been going through an economic crisis for many years. High price competition, huge AGR dues and high debt have been the major reasons for this. The company has suffered continuous losses. The number of customers has also decreased. On the other hand, other telecom companies have rapidly expanded 4G and 5G networks. Due to lack of funds, Vodafone Idea could not invest as much in network improvement and expansion.