British telecom major Vodafone on Wednesday said it has started preparatory work for initial public offer of its Indian business, biggest by customer numbers. “I cannot give you a date but I can tell you (that) we are positively inclined to an IPO and have started some preparatory work,” Vodafone Group CEO Vittorio Colao said.
The Group had in May asked investment bank Rothschild to compile a report about the benefits of a possible IPO, which would provide the company with cash for its India plans. The share sale will also offer investors an opportunity to reap dividends from a market where wireless growth is outpacing that of more mature countries such as Vodafone’s home market, the UK.
The company has been considering an Indian IPO for several years but has held back because of regulatory and tax issues in the country. “We have not made a final decision because there are many factors that influence (the IPO) one way or the other but we are positive,” he said.
Refusing to give a timeline, he said, “its very hard to give you date as many things can happen – financial markets, price, anything can happen. We have preparatory work underway so that we can make a decision.” Vodafone is India’s second-largest wireless mobile operator with a market capitalisation of about 9.3 billion pound, and an enterprise value of 11.4 billion pound, according to analysts at Citi.
The Indian division’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation reached 1.28 billion pound on sales of 4.3 billion pound in 2014-15. The business, which has more than 180 million customers, accounts for 10 per cent of Vodafone’s total revenue. It is said that any IPO would be for a non-controlling share of the business.
Asked if the company can go for an IPO during the pendancy of a Rs. 20,000 crore tax dispute, Colao said, “yes.” He however did not elaborate. Vodafone in January said that it has invested more than 12.8 billion pound in India since 2007. In 2013, it made commitment to invest about Rs. 8,500 crore annually.
In addition, the company acquired spectrum for about Rs. 25,959.74 crore in March and has plans to expand 3G service network from 9 circles to 16 circles.
