NEW DELHI: Debt-ridden telecom firm Vodafone Idea (VIL) on Wednesday reported a consolidated loss of Rs 7,175.9 crore in the September quarter as compared to a loss of Rs 8,746.6 crore in the same period a year ago.
The telecom service provider had reported a loss of Rs 6,432 crore in the previous quarter. The telco improved its average revenue per user (ARPU) by 6.8% sequentially, reaching Rs 156, driven by recent tariff hike in July 2024.
The telco, a joint venture between the UK’s Vodafone and India’s Aditya Birla Group, added that the recent tariff hikes have impacted its subscriber base. It fell from 126.7 million in Q1FY25 to 125.9 million 4G subscribers at the end of Q2FY25. However, it stated that it has increased its customer base in postpaid segment, both on a quarter-on-quarter (and year-on-year basis.
“Post the successful capital raise, we kickstarted our 4G expansion drive on an accelerated trajectory. We expanded 4G data capacity by 14% and 4G population coverage by 22 million, and consequently our 4G speeds improved by 18%.
In parallel, we worked on closure of long-term capex contracts and recently awarded capex deals worth $3.6 billion to three global partners Nokia, Ericsson and Samsung for the supply of network equipment over next 3 years,” said Akshaya Moondra, CEO, VIL.
VIL’s revenue for the quarter was Rs 10,930 crore, a QoQ improvement of 4%. The customer revenue rose by 5.6% as against the last quarter aided by recent tariff hikes undertaken by all private operators. On a reported basis, EBITDA for the quarter was Rs 4,550 crore.
The company’s capex spends for Q2FY25 was Rs 1,360 crore as against Rs 760 crore in Q1FY25. The expected capex for H2FY25 is Rs 8,000 crore. The telco’s debt from banks and financial institutions reduced by Rs 4,580 crore during the last one year (was at Rs 7,830 crore in Q2FY24) and stood at Rs 3,250 crore.
Nokia to complete 3,300 new sites for VIL by March
Finish telecom gear maker Nokia on Wednesday said it will deploy 3,300 new sites for Vodafone Idea in its circles, with the latest baseband and radio modules by March 2025. Additionally, Nokia’s upgrades to over 42,000 technology sites and over 25,000 spectrum expansions across VIL’s network will boost bandwidth and data capacity.