 "MTNL shares up 7% after DoT approaches finance ministry to repay co's debt")
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) share price jumped 6.6 per cent, logging an intraday high at ₹47.04 per share on BSE. The stock gained after department of telecom (DoT) once again approached the finance ministry seeking funds to repay the liabilities.
MTNL, a government-owned telecom company, is overseen by the DoT, which is responsible for policymaking and regulation in the telecom sector.
At 1:304 PM, MTNL shares were up 3.85 per cent at ₹45.8 per share on the BSE. In comparison, the BSE Sensex was down 1.18 per cent at 80,634.49. The market capitalisation of the company stood at ₹2,885.40 crore. The 52-week high of the stock was at ₹101.88 per share and the 52-week low of the stock was at ₹32.7 per share. Follow Stock Market Latest Updates Today LIVE
Meanwhile, MTNL’s total outstanding dues to public sector banks (PSBs) is ₹8,415.55 crore. In February, Business Standard reported that the finance ministry had rejected MTNL’s request that PSBs should take any kind of haircut on their debt.
In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar said BSNL and MTNL are monetising only those land and building assets, which are not required for their own use in the foreseeable future. For these, it has the rights to transfer ownership.
The minister said that between 2019 and January 2025, the earnings of MTNL from monetisation of non-core (land and buildings) and core (tower and fibre) assets are ₹2,134.61 crore and 258.25 crore, respectively. ALSO READ: Why Sensex fell 869pts, Nifty below 24,550 on May 22? Find out reasons here
In August 2024, Chandra Sekhar informed Rajya Sabha that MTNL had sought ₹1,151.65 crore to meet the payment of interest on sovereign guarantee bonds (SGBs) for 2024-25.
According to the latest data, several PSBs have classified loans to MTNL as non-performing assets (NPAs), with outstanding dues across both principal and interest components.
The seven PSBs with exposure to MTNL are Union Bank of India (₹3,664.09 crore), Indian Overseas Bank (₹2,393.81 crore), Bank of India (₹1,085.20 crore), Punjab National Bank (₹467.65 crore), State Bank of India (₹354.41 crore), UCO Bank (₹268.63 crore) and Punjab & Sind Bank (₹181.76 crore).
About MTNL
MTNL was set up in 1986 by the Government of India to upgrade the quality of telecom services, expand the telecom network, and introduce new services and to raise revenue for telecom development needs of India's key metros Delhi, the political capital and Mumbai, the financial capital of India.