Bharti Airtel reported a net loss of Rs 23,045 crore in the quarter that ended on September 2019 — a massive increase from the Rs 2,866 crore net loss which it posted in Q1FY20. Airtel said that the Supreme Court’s recent verdict on AGR (Adjusted Gross Revenue) had “significant financial implications on the company”. Without the SC verdict, Airtel's loss for Q2FY20 would have been Rs 1,123 crore. The net loss exceeded the company’s revenue, which grew 4.9% year on year to Rs 21,131 crore. Also, according to LiveMint, this is the company’s second quarterly loss in 14 years. Airtel has provided for an additional amount aggregating Rs 28,450 crore as a charge for the September quarter (comprising of Principal of Rs 6,164 crore, interest of Rs 12,219 crore, penalty of Rs 3,760 crore, and interest on penalty of Rs. 6,307 crore) with respect to the license fee as estimated, based on the SC’s verdict and spectrum usage charges based on the definition of AGR. On the AGR verdict, Bharti Airtel’s MD and CEO, Gopal Vittal said, “We are hopeful that the government will take a considerate view in this matter given the fragile state of the industry”. What was SC's verdict on AGR? Last month, the apex court had ordered telecom companies to include non-core income for calculation of Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR), and asked them to pay Rs 92,640 crores to the Centre, which includes disputed demand, interest, and penalty. Following the judgement, the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) had…
