Bharti Airtel is reportedly likely to secure US$2.5bn in financing from Chinese lenders during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China.
The deal is among several joint venture and financing deals, together worth some US$23.5bn, that are…
Bharti Airtel is reportedly likely to secure US$2.5bn in financing from Chinese lenders during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China.
The deal is among several joint venture and financing deals, together worth some US$23.5bn, that are likely to be signed during Modi’s visit, the Economic Times reported. The PM yesterday arrived in Xian, capital of China’s Shaanxi province, for a three-day visit as the two countries seek to strengthen economic ties.
Airtel, India’s largest telco by subscriber numbers, will sign two separate US$1bn facilities with China Development Bank: one to help pay for spectrum acquired in the March auction and the other to buy equipment from manufacturers ZTE and Huaewei, the report stated.
The telco will reportedly also ink a memorandum of understanding with Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) for a US$500m credit facility.
Airtel has declined to comment on the matter.
The telco agreed to pay Rs293.1bn (US$4.6bn) for spectrum in the latest spectrum auction, and is rolling out 4G services in major cities. It currently offers 4G in 17 cities.
