Bharti Airtel pays additional Rs 8,004 Crore to Department of Telecom towards AGR dues

Telecom operator, Bharti Airtel today said that it has made an additional payment of Rs 8,004 crore towards adjusted gross revenue dues to the Department of Telecom (DoT). The telco today said that it has finished assessing dues related to adjusted gross revenue (AGR) that it owes the government and the payment was done in tune to the same.

The payment of Rs 8,004 Crore is in addition to Rs 10,000 crore the company paid on February 17, in compliance with the Supreme Court judgment.

The company said it calculated the liabilities on self-assessment basis till December 31, 2019, and the payment includes interest up to February 29, 2020..

The company today in a regulatory filing, said, "It has carried out self-assessment from FY 2006-07 onwards up to December 31, 2019, and interest thereon up to February 29, 2020, in line with the AGR Judgment, various license agreements entered into with the Department of Telecommunications ("DoT") and the various directions issued by the DoT from time to time for Spectrum Usage Charges."

The latest deposit as adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues are split into Rs 3004 crore as full and final towards its AGR dues, based on its self-assessment. It paid an additional Rs 5000 crore as "ad-hoc payment", subject to refund after the telecom department reconciles its estimates with the telcos. The company in its regulatory filing also said, "The Company has paid an additional amount of Rs 3,004 crores towards the full and final amounts due over & above the ad-hoc amount of Rs 10,000 crores paid on February 17, 2020, on behalf of the Bharti Group of Companies (Bharti Airtel, Bharti Hexacom and Telenor India)."

In addition to the aforesaid amounts paid basis our self-assessment, we have also deposited an additional amount of Rs 5,000 crores, as an ad-hoc payment (subject to subsequent refund/adjustment) to cover differences, if any, arising from the reconciliation exercise with the DoT. Based on the aforesaid payment, we have now complied with AGR Judgment and the directions in the order of the Hon'ble Supreme Court dated October 24, 2019.

This means Airtel has paid Rs 18,004 crore in all compared to AGR demands of about Rs 35,000 crore.

The telco has also submitted its self-assessment to DoT.

So far Reliance Jio is the only telco which has paid its complete AGR dues of Rs 195 crore.

Vodafone Idea, which has been hit hardest by Supreme Court's AGR verdict, has so far paid Rs 3,500 crore of its Rs 57,000 crore as estimated by the DoT. Its estimate is dues of around Rs 23,000 crore, including Rs 7,000 crore principle.

Tata Teleservices, on the other hand, has paid Rs 2,197 crore as per its self-assessment and has submitted details of the AGR calculations to the government.