RIL drawing up plans to foray into telecom space

10 Jun 2010 Evaluate

The board of Reliance Industries (RIL) is believed to have approved plans to enter the Indian telecommunications sector when the opportunity arises, according to sources. India’s largest private sector company is expected to go for only the lucrative corporate bandwidth market, or the business of selling telecom and internet services to companies rather than individuals.

The government is currently auctioning frequency spectrum for broadband wireless access, or WiMAX, a technology that speeds up internet access and RIL is likely to set up a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to acquire one of the winners. It is widely believed in industry circles that Mahendra Nahata-owned Himachal Futuristic’s arm, Infotel Broadband Services, could be a candidate for acquisition by RIL. Infotel is currently among the bidders in the broadband wireless auction. Himachal Futuristic doesn’t have enough money of its own to be bidding. Infotel’s bid is likely to be backed by Reliance Industries. Infotel is separate from the rest of Himachal Futuristic, which operates telecom services in Punjab and offers some leased-line services. Infotel is a two-year-old entity, with the stated objective to roll out WIMAX across all circles in India.

According to current regulations, the department of telecommunications bars promoters from exiting for three years since receipt of spectrum. However, under a recent proposal by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, which seeks to do away with the three-year lock-in, RIL may freely acquire Infotel. The M&A proposal (by Trai) is likely to get accepted without change. But even if Trai’s recommendations are not accepted, an investor is free to acquire a stake in a spectrum winner by buying new shares.

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