Airtel Q2 loss at Rs 23,045 cr; Rs 1,123-cr loss before exceptional items

Shares of Bharti Airtel fell 1.59 per cent on Thursday to close at Rs 362.65 on the BSE

Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Thursday posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 23,044.9 crore for the second quarter ended September 2019. In the corresponding quarter last year, the company had posted a net profit of Rs 119 crore.

Revenue of the telecom firm, however, increased by 4.90 per cent to Rs 21,131 crore in the September quarter. Consolidated Ebitda increased by 40.90 per cent to Rs 8,936 crore. Net loss before exceptional items for the quarter stood at Rs 1,123 crore.

"On October 24, 2019, the Supreme Court of India delivered a judgment in relation to a long-outstanding industry-wide case upholding the view considered by Department of Telecommunications in respect of the definition of Adjusted Gross Revenue. This court Judgment has significant financial implications on the company. The Supreme Court has allowed a period of three months to the affected parties to pay amounts due to DoT," Bharti Airtel said in a statement.

The company is hopeful of relief and in the absence of the same, has provided for an additional amount aggregating Rs. 28,450 crore as a charge for the quarter (comprising of Principal of Rs. 6,164 crore, interest of Rs 12,219 crore, penalty of Rs 3,760 crore, and interest on penalty of Rs 6,307 crore) with respect to the licence fee as estimated based on the court judgment and spectrum usage charges (SUC) as estimated based on the definition of AGR, said Airtel in a BSE filing.

On the AGR verdict of the Supreme Court, Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, India & South Asia, said, "we will continue to engage with the government and are evaluating various options available to us. We are hopeful that the government will take a considerate view in this matter given the fragile state of the industry."

Shares of Bharti Airtel fell 1.59 per cent to close at Rs 362.65 on the BSE.