The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has given its nod to the merger of Bharti Digital Networks (formerly called Tikona Digital Networks) with Bharti Airtel.
The NCLT in its Tuesday order stated that under the scheme of amalgamation, all the property, rights and powers of Bharti Digital Networks will now be transferred to Sunil Mittal owned company. A similar transfer will happen of all the liabilities, duties and proceedings that are by or against Bharti Digital Networks.
“In view of absence of any other objections, having been placed on record before this Tribunal and since all the requisite statuary compliances having been fulfilled, this Tribunal sanctions the scheme of amalgamation…with the company petition as well as the prayer made therein “, said the order.
The alliance will now need the approval of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
In March 2017, Bharti Airtel had announced plans to buy Tikona Digital’s 4G airwaves for Rs 1,600 crore, in its bid to boost its high-speed broadband spectrum holdings for taking on Reliance Jio Infocomm (Jio) and the Vodafone-Idea Cellular combined.
Acquisition of Tikona gives Bharti Airtel access to the former’s 4G spectrum in five circles-—Gujarat, UP (East), UP (West), Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Amidst severe tariff wars, telcos are expanding their 4G bases to attract and retain the data guzzling customers. Airtel, which had bagged 4G airwaves in only four of the 22 circles, started buying companies who had 4G spectrum. Tikona was its fifth such acquisition since 2015.
ET had earlier reported that the Tikona deal, which includes taking on debt of Rs 500-600 crore, will see Airtel net 100 MHz of 4G spectrum in the 2300 MHz (4G) band equally split across the five circles, taking its total 4G holding to close to 880 MHz (including Telenor India), compared with 1,169 MHz for Jio and 1,089 MHz for the Vodafone-Idea combine. It will also get 350 cell sites in those five circles but won’t take on any employees of Tikona.
Source: Economic Times