Road show next week for RCom's Flag Tele listing in Singapore

RCom plans to divest 75% stake in Flag Telecom to raise about Rs 5,000-Rs 6,000 cr

First round of global roadshows for the listing of Reliance Communications' (RCom) undersea cable unit Flag Telecom on the Singapore Stock Exchange is likely to begin next week, banking sources said today.

RCom has filed a prospectus with the Singapore Stock Exchange and plans to divest as much as 75% stake in Flag Telecom to raise about Rs 5,000-Rs 6,000 crore.

"RCom's first round of global roadshows for Flag Telecom will begin next week," said a source.     When contacted, RCom spokesperson declined to comment.

Sources said, meanwhile, that the transaction is likely to close by June 12 and the bankers for the issue include Deutsche Bank, DBS of Singapore, Standard Chartered and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC).

RCom will use entire proceeds to pay high cost rupee loans, they said.

Flag Telecom was acquired by the then undivided Reliance Group for $207 million (less than Rs 1,000 crore) in 2003.

As part of the telecom portfolio of the erstwhile Reliance group, Flag Telecom later came into the fold of Anil Ambani-led group after the split between two Ambani brothers.

In recent past, RCom has been exploring various routes of raising funds, including selling stake in its telecom tower arm -- Reliance Infratel, a move that will help the company retire a major chunk of debt on its books.

As of quarter ended September 2011, RCom had total debt of nearly Rs 32,000 crore.

The company has received RBI approval for refinancing being provided by ICBC, CDB and EXIM for redemption of its outstanding Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs) worth Rs 5,825 crore.