The National Company Law Tribunal adjourned the hearing of insolvency petitions filed against Reliance CommunicationsBSE 0.59 % to early next month after a group of the telecom operator’s lenders sought time to consider converting the company’s loans into equity.
The joint lenders forum managing the recast of RCom’s debt will have a meeting this month-end, the counsel representing them told the NCLT. The meeting coincides with the deadline for converting the operator’s loans into equity, as per strategic debt restructuring guidelines.
“The JLF has a meeting this month end and we would request you to hear the case after that,” JLF counsel Ashish Kamat told the NCLT on behalf of legal firm Naik, Naik & Co.
The bench, comprising Justices BSV Prakash Kumar and V Nallasenapathy, said they will hear the insolvency petitions filed by China Development Bank and Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson against RCom on January 5. Ericsson had sought hearing of the matter on Monday.
The adjourned date will be a breather for RCom. If the tribunal had accepted the insolvency petitions before December 28, by when the lenders need to decide on converting their RCom debt into equity, the process would have ended. RCom, which has shut its wireless business, started its strategic debt restructuring on June 2.
JLF’s representatives appeared for a hearing related to the insolvency petitions filed against the Anil Ambani-controlled operator for the first time on Monday.
The telco presented a fresh “zero write-off” plan to its lenders a couple of months ago, under which banks could convert some of its debt and take a 51% stake in the telecom operator. Of the Rs 45,000 crore debt, the lenders could convert Rs 7,000 crore into equity; raise Rs 17,000 crore through the sale of assets such as telecom towers and spectrum and another Rs 10,000 crore from the sale of real estate.
RCom shares declined 0.25% to Rs 11.83 at the close on the BSE on Monday.
