LIC wants to exit MTNL via pvt placement

09 Mar 2012 Evaluate

Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of Indiawants to divest its 18.81 per cent stake in Mahanagar TelephoneNigam Ltd (MTNL) through private placement of shares. LIC has discussed theissue with the government, which has a controlling stake of 56.25 per cent inthe company that runs fixed as well as mobile services in Mumbai and Delhi. Since the shares of MTNL are now quoted much below theprice at which the insurer bought these, the best option is private placementto a strategic investor.  Based on thelast closing price of Rs 30.35 a share, the value of LIC’s shares is around Rs360 crore. If the insurer exits at this price, it will end with a loss of Rs750 crore, as the shares were bought when MTNL was trading at Rs 92 a share.Only a private placement will enable LIC to cut its losses.

Private telcos had earlier shown interest inpicking up a strategic stake in MTNL for many reasons: the company is rich inspectrum and operates in the two most lucrative markets for telecom in thecountry. It has more than 12.4 MHz of 2G spectrum, which no other privateplayer has in these spectrum-starved cities. It also has 20 MHz of valuablebroadband wireless spectrum, which it plans to offer on franchise basis inDelhi and Mumbai and, of course, 3G spectrum in the same cities. And, it hassome lucrative real estate. Two, many new operators which have got into 4G fordata services do not have either 2G or 3G spectrum and a voice option for theircustomers. A strategic stake in MTNL could help them not only in getting readycustomers for 4G, but also enable them to offer subscribers seamless voiceservices on 2G and 3G, as well as 4G.

The government, however, has been treadingcautiously on privatizing  MTNL due to stiff opposition from unions,though discussions on divesting the government stake in MTNL have been going onfor over a decade. With around 5.6 million mobile customers in Delhi andMumbai, MTNL has a minor 0.64 per cent of the mobile market. In wireline, itcontrols over 10.57 per cent of the Indian market, but it is a business whosegrowth rate has been declining. In Delhi, it is only the seventh largest mobileplayer with less than seven per market share. In Mumbai, it controls less thaneight per cent of the mobile market and is seventh in the pecking order. Confrontedwith cut-throat competition from private players and unable to expand as fastas its competitors, MTNL has been in financial stress with its lossesincreasing to Rs 929 crore in the quarter ended December 2011.

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