NEW DELHI: Telecom service provider Bharti Airtel on Tuesday said that it will bring down its stake in Bharti Infratel to 18.3 per cent by selling around 32 per cent stake to Nettle Infrastructure Investments.
“The Board of Directors of Bharti Airtel Limited, in order to explore a potential monetization of stake in Bharti Infratel Limited (‘Infratel’) in the future, approved sale transfer of up to 32 per cent of Infratel to its wholly-owned subsidiary—Nettle Infrastructure Investments Limited (‘Nettle’)—in its meeting held on December 20, 2018,” the company said in a regulatory filing.
Nettle Infrastructure has a 3.2 per cent stake in Infratel. After the transaction, its stake would rise to 35.2 per cent, it said. Bharti Airtel currently has a 50.3 per cent stake in the telecom tower company.
According to Infratel, the acquisition would take place on or after March 18. The price of shares for the deal would be at or around the market price prevailing on the date of acquisition. Sector analysts said this transfer of shares would eventually lead to sale of the stake to a third party and help Bharti Airtel raise much-needed funds. Airtel, and the other player, Vodafone Idea, are facing pressure on their financials since the entry of Reliance Jio in late 2016.
The shares of Bharti Airtel surged 6 per cent on the BSE on Tuesday and closed at Rs 350.80 a piece, up 5.12 per cent from the previous day’s closing figure.