Bharti Airtel Prepays INR 8,465 Crore for 2016 Spectrum Licenses

Bharti Airtel announced that it has prepaid Rs 8,465 crore to the Indian government for spectrum it acquired in 2016. This came after prepaying Rs 7,904 crore in June for 2012 and 2015 spectrum liabilities, with a combined interest rate of 9.3%. The move follows the Supreme Court's dismissal of pleas for AGR corrections.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Monday announced that it has prepaid Rs 8,465 crore to the Indian government for spectrum licenses acquired in 2016. This prepayment aims to address high-interest liabilities previously recorded at an interest rate of 9.3 per cent.

The company continues to clear its financial commitments, having earlier prepaid Rs 7,904 crore in June to settle all deferred liabilities for spectrum acquired in 2012 and 2015, where interest rates were as high as 10 per cent.

In a recent round of spectrum auctions, Airtel emerged as the top bidder, securing 60 per cent of the total spectrum, just days after the Supreme Court dismissed pleas, including those from Airtel, related to Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) computational errors.

(With inputs from agencies.)