Anil Ambani announces debt revival plan for Reliance Communications

Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani on Tuesday said the company has achieved full resolution of Reliance Communications` debt restructuring. 
 
"We have achieved resolution that involves Reliance Communications exiting strategic debt recast. Clearly and truly this is a historical achievement for any group. RCOM debt will reduce by Rs 25,000 crore, The entire monetisation process to repay debt of lenders will be completed by January-March 2018," said Ambani Amabani while addressing media persons in Mumbai.
 
Ambani accepted that RCom had faced  a lot of headwinds in the last few months with respect to NCLT petitions.
 
It may be noted that the company's asset monetisation was run with independent oversight panel chaired by the Reserve Bank of India's Deputy governor SS Mundra.
 
Ambani went on explaining that monetisation proceeds will be utilised to pare down debt & to pay outstanding dues to lenders.
 
RCom has been burdened with Rs 45,000 crore of debt as on September 2017. Of this, Rs 25,000 crore is domestic debt and the remaining Rs 20,000 crore is in the form of foreign loans and bonds. Further, RCom has classified Rs 22,550 crore of borrowings as non-current liabilities.
 
Tackling this net debt has become a major priority for Anil Ambani's RCom to stay floated into the business.
 
RCom, which has been facing heat from lenders and investors on the back of financial losses, higher net debt and credit rating downgrades, is likely to see a significant change in the year 2018, with new resolution plan announced by Anil Ambani Tuesday.
 
Ambani confidently said RCom's total debt will be brought down to Rs 6,000 crore from current Rs 45,000 crore in the coming days.
 
He expressed hope to have a new strategic partner for RCom to cut overall debt.
 
The company has engaged with unsecured creditors and has received nine non-binding offers for stake sale in RCom, said Ambani while adding that Chinese banks have been part of RCom's debt resolution plan.
 
He stated that transactions will close in a phased manner between January and March 2018, and RCom's debt will also fall by Rs 25,000 crore.
 
Further he added that he has "Rationalised the wireless business effective November; and have gained precious 4G & 5G spectrum via deal with  Sistema Shyam Telecom Limited (SSTL)."
 
Saying that going forward Reliance Communications will be a business-to-business (B2B) company, he added the company achieved this debt restructuring by asset monetisation and selling real estate.
 
After the announcement, Reliance Communication shares ended at Rs 23 per piece on the BSE, surging by a whopping 41.02%.