The merger of Bharti Infratel with Indus Towers was already hanging in the balance but it has now suffered another setback. Bharti Airtel's attempt to sell a significant stake in the merged business has come to a halt as the ongoing talks have now been put on hold, people aware of the development told CNBC-TV18. The delay in the completion of the merger is the reason for the setback.
"Bharti airtel has been in talks with potential investors to sell a majority of its stake in the merged entity of Bharti Infratel and Indus Towers, which will be named Bharti Infratel. To stay ahead of the curve, the company had begun talks right after the merger deal was signed to sell this stake but with the delay players have pulled out," a person connected to the deal told CNBC-TV18.
Another person added: "ATC, KKR, Brookfield and other PE [private equity] players were actively in talks. ATC and KKR were almost in final stages but with the delay, they have decided to pull out. Bharti Airtel will now restart the stake sale process from scratch but only once the timeline of the merger completion is clear."
The merger has received all necessary approvals but is awaiting a final nod from the Department of Telecom (DoT), which has been pending since October last year.
The initial deadline or the long stop date for the merger was October 2019. The deadline was then extended to December 2019 and then again to February 24, 2020.
People connected to the company on condition of anonymity said that the DoT had sought further details in the last one month from the company and is expected to give its verdict within the next two weeks.
Bharti Airtel did not comment on the development.
The merger between the two tower giants will give the combined entity 163,000 - 165,000 towers across 22 circles under the umbrella of Bharti Infratel, which is listed on the Indian bourses. Once the merger is completed Bharti Airtel will hold a 37 percent stake in the merged entity.
"Bharti Airtel was hoping to get between Rs 35,000- Rs 40,000 crore from the sale of its stake," said one of the persons quoted above.
Currently ATC has 78,000 towers in India. Brookfield acquired reliance Jio's telecom infrastructure, with 170,000 towers, in July for $3.7 billion.
