Sunil Mittal's Bharti Airtel aims to complete the due diligence of Zain's African assets by March 15, it has told brokerage firm India Infoline.
Bharti told IIFL the USD 10.7 billion amount, which it has proposed to buy out Zain's assets, is the enterprise value of the holding company, which Bharti aims to buy in full. Bharti's interest cost will be significantly less than 7%, it said.
"For Zain, there are various levers for revenue improvement: increasing usage through low-cost models and mobile penetration," Bharti told IIFL. "The board has a defined criteria for acquisitions and Zain meets it."
IIFL has said smart deal structuring could lower Bharti's interest costs further. "The deal could include equity/hybrids and also involve Singtel, Bharti's key shareholder. We maintain a 'buy' on Bharti."
