Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) have invited bids from consultants to help them monetise their real estate holdings, say news reports.
The operators’ move is aimed at generating additional revenue, since both are facing a financial crunch, owing to declining revenues and widening losses.
The chosen consultants will assist both the operators with valuation of their properties, assessment of the rental potential of various built-up spaces, development of vacant land parcels and disposing of assets.
Having already received technical bids from various consulting firms, BSNL is likely to appoint a consultant to advise it on the real estate matters by November 15, 2012. Following the financial bid, the selected consultant will have to submit their business plan to the operator within the next four months.
BSNL owns land banks across 3, 500 towns in the country and plans to hive off about 4,400 hectare of its total land bank. BSNL has already taken up a pilot project for commercial exploitation of 10 land banks, which is expected to bring in Rs 2.5 billion for the operator in the financial year 2013-14 and an equal rental income from 2016 onwards.
MTNL is looking at using a consultant’s services to help it lease a bulk of its 0.78 million sq ft of built-up office space in Delhi and Mumbai and help it further develop huge tracts of land in possession of the operator.
