Bharti Airtel announced an agreement with rival Reliance Jio to transfer the Right to Use of Airtel’s 800 MHz spectrum in Andhra Pradesh (3.75 MHz), Delhi (1.25 MHz) and Mumbai (2.50 MHz) to Jio.
The agreement is subject to statutory approvals. With this trading of right to use spectrum, Jio will have 2X15MHz of spectrum in the 800MHz band in Mumbai circle and 2X10MHz of spectrum in the 800MHz band in Andhra Pradesh and Delhi circles, further consolidating its spectrum footprint in these circles.
Airtel will receive a consideration of Rs 1037.6 crore from Jio for the proposed transfer. In addition, Jio will assume future liabilities of Rs 459 crore relating to the spectrum.
Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO (India and South Asia) of Bharti Airtel said: “The sale of the 800 MHz blocks in these three circles has enabled us to unlock value from spectrum that was unutilised. This is aligned to our overall network strategy.”
