Rcom raises $255 mn for part-finance of 3G loan

MUMBAI: Reliance Communications (RCom), part of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group, Tuesday said it has raised $255 million (Rs.1,155 crore) through external commercial borrowings for partly re-financing payments for acquiring third generation (3G) spectrum.

"RCom will benefit from extension of maturity and substantial savings in interest costs from the facility," the company said in a regulatory statement.

The loan is funded by a consortium of banks led by Australian and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, DBS Bank Ltd and Intesa Sanpaolo Spa.

Reliance Communications, which won the bids for 13 telecom circles including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Punjab, had to pay Rs.8,585.04 crore to the government towards securing the 3G spectrum.

Last year, RCom had also signed an agreement with the China Development Bank Corporation for a loan of $1.33 billion for re-financing the loans taken to pay the 3G spectrum fee and for financing up to $600 million towards procuring 85 percent of telecom equipment and services from Chinese firms Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corporation.