Reliance Communications (RCom), the country’s fourth-largest telecom operator by subscribers, has received ₹650 crore as the first instalment from a promoter group. This is half of the total ₹1,300 crore the company is raising from promoters through preferential allotment of shares.

The company has received the amount, which is 50 per cent of the issue price, from Telecom Infrastructure Finance Pvt Ltd. The company expects to receive the balance amount by March 31, 2015, RCom said in a release.

The promoter group is investing at ₹150 a share (including a premium of ₹145 a share). The company, controlled by billionaire Anil Ambani, is allotting a total of 8.67 crore warrants at ₹150/share.

RCom had received shareholders’ approval on July 24.

In June, RCom had raised ₹4,800 crore through a qualified institutional placement or stake sale to institutions, with the demand coming in from Singapore- and Hong Kong-based funds.

RCom will use the proceeds — both from the preferential allotment and QIP — to pare high-cost rupee debt, which will help it make interest savings of more than ₹800 crore a year.

As of March 30, RCom had a debt of about ₹40,000 crore, but pared it down to ₹34,000 crore following the fund-raising initiatives.

On Thursday, RCom shares closed down 0.65 per cent at ₹129.10, on the BSE.

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