Will Vofadone Idea be able to redeem itself? Loss in Q4 more than ₹7,000 crore

For the final quarter of fiscal 2025, debt-ridden telecom firm Vodafone Idea (Vi) saw its losses narrow to ₹7,166.1 crore, as it looked to regain ground in the brutal race for mobile subscribers. The Vi board also approved a ₹20,000 crore fundraising, which would not have to get approvals from both shareholders and statutory bodies.

 

The Supreme Court’s recent dismal of its plea on relief to AGR dues added to the woes of the troubled telecom company. However, it looks forward to cash flows in the near term with further engagement with the government.

 

For the March quarter, Vi posted a 3.8 per cent year-on-year rise in its revenue of ₹11,013.5 crore. The final quarter of fiscal 2024 saw Vi losses at ₹7,674.6 crore, which marginally reduced to ₹7,166.1 crore this time around. Despite the massive losses, the average revenue per user (ARPU)—the one redeeming metric for telecoms—improved to ₹175 this quarter (compared to ₹153 in Q4 of FY2024).

For the full year, Vi incurred a loss of a staggering ₹27,383.4 crore, putting its net worth at a negative ₹70,320.2 crore. The Vi group’s outstanding debts stood at ₹2345.1 crore as of March-end.

Vi also has ₹1,94,910.6 crore in dues, including deferred payment obligation towards Spectrum payable over the years till FY 2044 and towards AGR payable over the years till FY 2031. “The group’s ability to settle the above liabilities is dependent on further support from the DoT on the AGR matter, fundraising through equity and debt and generation of cash flow from operations. Based on current efforts, the group believes that it would be able to get DoT support, successfully arrange funding and generate cash flow from operations,” the company, which recently the Indian government’s holding in it rise to 49 per cent, stated.

The Vi board approved the fundraising of up to ₹20,000 crore and authorised the Capital Raising Committee to evaluate and decide the potential route of fundraising, including related matters.

Despite the telecom carrier’s troubles, Vi CEO Akshaya Moondra called the January-March period a “turnaround quarter” that was “marked by the highest average daily revenue in the past 5 years and a significant reduction in subscriber loss.”

“Early indicators show improvement across key business metrics, and with our ongoing investments, we are well placed to effectively participate in the growth opportunity offered by the industry,” added Moondra.

Moreover, Vi also expanded its 5G services to Mumbai, Delhi, Chandigarh and Patna. “Our expansion efforts are underway to offer 5G services in the key geographies of all 17 circles where we have 5G spectrum by August 2025,” said the CEO.

Vi also looks to secure debt financing to support its broader capex plans of ₹50,000 to ₹55,000 crore, Moondra stressed.

Last month, the telecom carrier told the Centre that it would not be able to operate beyond FY 2026 without government support, adding that “no support will lead to the point of no return”.

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