Bharti Infratel posts Rs 1,043 crore profit before tax in September quarter

Bharti Infratel on Monday reported Rs 1,043 crore profit before tax for the second quarter ended September 30, up 6 per cent from Rs 988 crore in the same last year.

The company during the quarter has reported reduction in co-locations of 1,106 basis exit notices received. However, as on September 30, 2019, there are cumulative 3,750 co-locations for which though the exit notices have been received but actual exits have not happened.

“We continue to believe that there is a strong growth potential in telecom passive infrastructure in the country as telecom networks keep pace with the continuing exponential data consumption growth. Both Bharti and Indus towers are well poised with their industry-leading scale and strong financial position to partner with mobile operators as they look to intensify their networks,” Akhil Gupta, chairman, Bharti Infratel, said.

Infratel posted 61 per cent jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 964 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2019.

The mobile tower arm of Bharti Airtel had recorded a profit of Rs 600 crore in the same quarter a year ago. The company, however, reported a marginal dip in revenue to Rs 3,638 crore during the September quarter from Rs 3,668 crore in the year-ago period.

The company's mobile tower base increased by 1,298 year-on-year to 93,421, at the end of September 30, 2019. Government has now allowed domestic companies an option to pay income tax at an effective tax rate (ETR) of 25.17 per cent instead of the earlier 34.94 per cent.

After the government reduced tax for companies, the effective MAT (minimum alternate tax) rate for the current quarter was 21 per cent, which in previous quarter was at 25 per cent. Infrastructure sharing is effective in optimizing the utilization of available resources and helps to bring down the cost of providing telecommunications services.