India’s third-largest telecom operator, Vodafone Idea (Vi), has proposed to borrow ₹23,000 crore in term loans and sought an additional ₹10,000 crore in bank guarantees. This funding is part of Vi’s strategy to enhance its 4G coverage and roll out 5G to compete with larger rivals Reliance Jio and Airtel.
Both Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have already deployed pan-India 5G networks. Vi began considering a large-scale 5G rollout over six months ago and plans to invest ₹50,000-55,000 crore over the next three years. Despite the focus on 5G, Vi’s top priority remains expanding and strengthening its 4G coverage.
According to The Economic Times, Vi, a joint venture between Vodafone Plc and Aditya Birla Group, submitted its loan proposal to a State Bank of India (SBI)-led banking consortium. The funds will be used to upgrade mobile broadband network infrastructure across its 17 priority markets.
Vi’s approach to banks follows its recent arrangement of around ₹24,000 crore in equity capital, fulfilling a key condition set by lenders for extending fresh loans. Over the past few months, Vi has been negotiating with banks to raise up to ₹25,000 crore via debt and an additional ₹10,000 crore in non-fund-based facilities such as bank guarantees.
