MUMBAI: Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) reported a narrowed year-on-year (YoY) consolidated net loss of Rs7,175.9 crore for the September 2024 quarter (Q2 FY25), compared with a Rs8,737.9 crore loss in the same period last year.
Sequentially, however, losses widened from Rs6,432.1 crore in the previous quarter. Revenue from operations in Q2 FY25 increased by 2.02 per cent to Rs10,932.2 crore, up from Rs10,716.3 crore a year earlier.
EBITDA
VIL’s EBITDA for the quarter was Rs4,550 crore, with “Cash EBITDA excluding Ind AS 116 impact” rising to Rs2,320 crore – the highest since the merger. The telecom operator’s subscriber base totaled 20.5 crore, with 4G subscribers at 12.59 crore in Q2 FY25, and an average revenue per user (ARPU) of Rs166.
The company raised Rs18,000 crore from its follow-on public offering (FPO) and is preparing to roll out 5G services in select areas. CEO Akshaya Moondra highlighted recent capex contracts worth $3.6 billion awarded to Nokia, Ericsson, and Samsung for network equipment over three years.
Network expansion
VIL remains in discussions with lenders to fund Rs50,000-55,000 crore in capex for network expansion over the next three years. Moondra also noted that recent tariff hikes have positively impacted ARPU and revenue, with further gains expected in the coming quarters. He emphasised that additional tariff rationalisation is essential for the industry to meet its cost of capital. VIL, formed in 2018 from the merger of Vodafone Group’s India business with Idea Cellular, had a promoter stake of 36.87 per cent as of April 23, 2024.
The quarterly results were released post-market hours, following a 3.91 per cent dip in VIL’s share price, which closed at Rs7.37 on the NSE.
