Vodafone Idea delays payment of AGR dues worth Rs 8,837 crore by four years

Vodafone Idea

Vodafone Idea (Vi) has said it is delaying by four years the payment of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues worth Rs 8,837 crore as the department of telecom (DoT) has offered the telco the option to do so.

After the delay, Vodafone Idea will pay the amount in six equal instalments starting 31 March 2026.

According to the company, an old DoT communication from 14 October 2021 had granted a four-year deferment on the dues as determined by the Supreme Court (SC). This covered all the AGR dues up to 2016-17 (dues which were included in the SC order).

DoT, however, informed Vodafone Idea on 15 June 2022 that it can opt for a moratorium of four years on all AGR dues up to 2018-19, which had not been included in the order dated 1 September 2020.

DoT said that the company can also give equity to the government in exchange for interest due on these AGR payments. If the firm decides to go for this, the government would get an even larger stake in the telco.

Vodafone Idea's board approved the option to defer AGR-related dues for a period of four years on Wednesday. According to the telco, the amount of AGR dues in the DoT letter is Rs 8,837 crore.