Vodafone Idea Limited (Vi) has announced its financial results for the quarter ended (QE) December 31, 2023. The operator has posted a revenue of Rs 106.7 billion during the quarter. On a year-on-year (YoY) basis, revenue grew by 0.5 per cent aided by improvement in subscriber mix, 4G subscriber additions, and change in entry level plan.
On a reported basis, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the quarter grew by 4.1 per cent on YoY basis from Rs 41.8 billion in the third quarter (Q3) of the fiscal year 2022-23 (FY23) to Rs 43.5 billion and EBITDA margins were at 40.8 per cent. EBITDA excluding IndAS116 impact, was up by 6.8 per cent YoY basis to Rs 21.4 billion compared to Rs 20 billion in Q3 FY23. This is highest pre-IndAS116 EBITDA in last 11 quarters. Meanwhile, average revenue per user (ARPU) for the quarter stood at Rs 145 as compared to Rs 135 in Q3 FY23, representing YoY growth of 7.4 per cent.
Further, Vi’s capex spend for the quarter stood at Rs 3.3 billion, and capex for the nine months at Rs 13 billion. The total gross debt (excluding lease liabilities and including interest accrued but not due) as of December 31, 2023 stood at Rs 2,149.6 billion comprising of deferred spectrum payment obligations of Rs 1,382.4 billion and adjusted gross revenue (AGR) liability of Rs 690.2 billion that are due to the government, debt from banks and financial institutions of Rs 60.5 billion and optionally convertible debentures (OCDs) amounting to Rs 16.6 billion. The net debt stood at Rs 2,146.4 billion. The debt from banks and financial institution reduced by Rs 71.4 billion during the last one year, which was at Rs 131.9 billion previously in Q3 FY23.
Commenting on the results, Akshaya Moondra, chief executive officer (CEO), Vi, said “We are pleased to report highest EBITDA (pre-IndAS 116) of Rs 21.4 billion in last 11 quarters. In line with the evolving industry landscape and changing customer needs, we have revamped our offerings as well as focusing on our execution to effectively compete in the market. Resultantly, we are able to grow our 4G subscribers and ARPUs consecutively for last 10 quarters. We remain engaged with various parties for fund raising, to make required investments for network expansion, including 5G rollout.”
