UK's Vodafone to sell partial stake in Indus; to infuse proceeds in Vi

Britain's Vodafone is looking to sell partial part of its 28.1% stake in Indus Towers Ltd, India's largest cell tower firm, the telecom group said on Wednesday.

Vodafone has launched an initial sale of 63.6 million Indus shares through an accelerated book building offering and said it was in talks with various parties regarding the sale of its remaining shares.

The company's total stake of 757.8 million shares was worth roughly Rs 19,070 crore as of Friday close, according to Reuters calculations.

A news channel reported that Vodafone PLC will on Thursday sell 2.4% stake in company worth $200 million via block deal. 

Offer range will be Rs 227-231 per share, up to 10% discount to current market price, reported CNBC TV-18 while adding that the offer size will be Rs 1,440 crore. 

The development comes after a challenging period for Vodafone in India, where its local arm, Vodafone Idea, has faced intense competition and lost millions of wireless subscribers to Reliance's Jio and Bharti Airtel.
 

Vodafone Idea's troubles have been compounded by huge dues owed to the Indian government, which is expected to own a 35.8% stake in the venture through a recent deal.

The British firm said on Wednesday it was in advanced talks with one of Indus's largest shareholders to sell a 4.7% stake in the company.

The company did not provide a name, but Indian media reported Vodafone was in talks to sell a 5% stake in Indus to Bharti Airtel. Bharti Enterprises Ltd, Bharti Airtel's parent, is Indus's largest shareholder, according to Refinitiv data.

Vodafone is also in talks with "several interested parties" to potentially sell its remaining shareholding in Indus, the company said.

It added that the promoters of Vodafone Idea are committed to support Vi in its efforts to strengthen its balance sheet. 

($1 = 74.5510 Indian rupees)