Vodafone Idea Ltd narrows Q3 FY 21 loss to Rs 4,532 crores

Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL) today announced the consolidated financial results for the quarter ending December 31, 2020, narrowing its Q3 FY 21 loss to Rs 4,532 crore down from Rs 7,218 crore loss in the trailing quarter. The struggling telecom operator achieved Rs 40 billion annualized opex savings by December 2021 achieving 50 percent of targeted opex efficiency on a run-rate basis.

VIL’s revenue went up by 1% Q-o-Q to Rs 108.9 billion on the back of an improved subscriber mix with higher 4G additions and better subscriber retention post-launch of unified brand Vi and better network performance. VIL during the quarter continued to expand network capacity with spectrum refarming and network upgrade to 4G.

VIL also got the nod from the board to raise funds upto Rs 250 crore through a mix of debt and equity and remains in active discussions with potential investors.

“In Q3FY21, we improved subscriber retention and operating performance, supported by Vi GIGAnet, which remains the fastest 4G network in India, as per Ookla as well the network with highest rated voice quality as per TRAI – a testimony to our superior network. We remain focused on executing our strategy, and our cost optimization plan remains on track to deliver the targeted savings. The Board has approved funds raising to support our strategic intent and we are in active discussions with potential investors.”

Ravinder Takkar, MD & CEO, Vodafone Idea Limited

VIL added 12,000 4G FDD sites primarily through refarming of 2G/3G spectrum to expand its 4G capacity while expanding its LTE 900 presence in select locations including dynamic spectrum refarming. The broadband site count stood at 447,936 as of Q3 FY21 up from 457,386 in the trailing quarter on the back of aggressive refarming of 3G sites into 4G.

VIL’s subscriber base stood at 269.8 million in Q3 FY 21 with a Q-o-Q decline of 2 million versus an 8.1 million decline in Q2 FY 21. The gross addition improved with subscriber churn reducing to 2.3% in Q3 FY 21 versus 2.6% in Q2 FY 21. Vi’s ARPU for Q3 FY21 increased to Rs 121 compared to Rs 119 in Q2 FY 21. Vi’s 4G subscriber base grew by 3.6 million to 109.7 million at Q3 FY 21 end.