Powergrid to lease bandwidth for TV

Powergrid Corporation of India, the country's largest transmitter of electricity, is planning to offer bandwidth on its fibre optic network to entertainment companies for the first time.

"We plan to enter the entertainment space with a joint venture in Andhra Pradesh. We are talking to two private companies which will actually roll out the business," said a top Powergrid official. He declined to name the private companies.

Powergrid will lease out bandwidth on its extensive fibre network to stream television content. "The move is aimed at leveraging our fibre optic network. Also since the rate of return on investment in our core electricity transmission business is fixed at 14 per cent, we hope to garner greater revenues from other businesses," the official said.

The joint venture would be rolled out in another 3-4 months, the official added. After that, it would also lease out bandwidth on its fibre optic network in other states.

Powergrid has a 20,000-km fibre optic network and leases bandwidth to all major telecom players like Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communication and BSNL.

It is also planning to rent out its over 20,000 transmission towers to cellular and entertainment companies. "We are in discussions with all the major telecom companies for renting out our towers," the company official said.

The company recorded revenues of Rs 125 crore from its telecom business in 2007-08, which is 62 per cent higher than the Rs 77 crore it recorded in 2006-07. "We plan revenues of around Rs 300 crore from our telecom business by 2010," Powergrid's Chairman and Managing Director RP Singh said recently.

A major chunk of this revenue will come from the entertainment and broadcasting business, the company official said.

Powergrid owns and operates the bulk of the country's inter-state power transmission network and transmits about 45 per cent of the power generated in the country.