Vodafone Idea said its FPO will be open for public bids between April 18- 22
Indian carrier Vodafone Idea is planning to launch a follow-on public offering (FPO) to raise a total of INR180 billion ($2.16 billion) through a sale of new shares, according to local press reports.
A follow-on offering is when a public company issues more shares after their initial public offering (IPO).
Vodafone Idea said its FPO will be open for public bids starting this week, from April 18-22.
Vodafone Idea said it expects to use the equity and debt funding to deploy its 5G service across India within six to seven months of securing the funds. The new funding will also be used to expand its current 4G coverage, according to the reports.
Rival operators Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio Infocomm already provide 5G services across the country. The two telcos initially launched 5G services in October 2022.
Vodafone Idea expects 5G technology to account for nearly 40% of its overall revenues in 24-to-30 months, according to recent press reports. This goal implies that Vodafone Idea will target 5G coverage in roughly the top 100 cities and towns that generate 40% of its current revenues, a company spokesperson said.
The operator has recently completed its minimum rollout obligation towards 5G deployments in four telecom circles in India. In a presentation for investors, Vodafone Idea, which is a joint venture between U.K. carrier Vodafone and India’s Aditya Birla Group, said its delayed entry into India’s 5G race would help it access the latest advances in 5G technology in a cost-efficient way.
The Indian telco also noted that 90% of its radio gear is already 5G-ready. During the presentation, the carrier also announced plans to refarm its airwaves in the 900 MHz and 2.1 GHz bands as part of plans to expand the telco’s 4G coverage in its 17 priority markets across India.
In the carrier’s annual report, Vodafone Idea had said it has concluded device testing of all major OEMs on its upcoming 5G mobile broadband network. Vodafone Idea has partnered with various OEMs to test the compatibility of available 5G handsets in 5G clusters in the cities of Delhi and Pune. “The company is working towards rolling out 5G for consumers. The deployment will be accelerated subsequent to the consummation of fund raising,” Vodafone Idea previously said.
U.S.-based Open RAN (O-RAN) provider Mavenir recently said it expects to secure a commercial agreement from Vodafone Idea for the deployment of the latter’s 5G network by the end of the year.
