Airtel sells 10.3% stake in Bharti Infratel to KKR, CPPIB for Rs 6,194 cr

Stake sale likely to help reduce telco's Rs 97,395-crore debt

Leading telecom operator Bharti Airtel has offloaded a 10.3 per cent stake in its tower infrastructure arm Bharti Infratel for Rs 6,193.9 crore to a consortium of global private equity firms KKR and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB). The move is expected to help reduce the telco’s nearly Rs 1-lakh crore debt, besides strengthening its cash reserves to invest in infrastructure amid market consolidation.

With this, KKR has returned as an investor in Bharti Infratel. It had earlier invested in Bharti Infratel in 2007 but subsequently divested in public markets in three tranches between December 2012 and June 2015,