In an attempt to ward off the threat of licence and spectrum cancellation, debt-laden Reliance Communications (RCom) and its subsidiary, Reliance Telecom, have re-instated bank guarantees of ₹774 crore with DoT.

Separately, according to sources close to the development, RCom has received the first tranche of about ₹800 crore as asset monetisation.

The replenishment of the bank guarantees with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) comes four weeks ahead of the September 10 deadline granted by the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT).

The reinstatement of the bank guarantees ensures that RCom’s licence and spectrum with a value of ₹11,300 crore are fully protected, and the company is fully compliant with the guidelines of the Notice Inviting Approvals (NIA) 2013 and NIA 2015, RCom said in a statement.

RCom’s asset monetisation programme of about ₹25,000 crore by selling its Media Convergence Nodes (MCNs), tower, optic fibre and spectrum is on track, and will be “completed expeditiously”.

RCom received the first tranche of about ₹800 crore as asset monetisation last week, sources said.

This was mainly for the towers, optical fibre cable network, certain spectrum and Media Convergence Nodes.

In July, RCom moved the TDSAT with a plea to quash an earlier DoT order that threatened to cancel the operator’s plans to sell its spectrum to Reliance Jio Infocomm (RJio), unless it pays ₹774 crore in bank guarantees.

Further, the Anil Ambani-led company also asked the telecom tribunal to direct DoT not to act in “furtherance” of the show-cause notices and restrain DoT from restraining or revoking its licences or spectrum. The show-cause notices were dated June 19 and June 22. In its petition, RCom said the payment of ₹774 crore, for which the licensor had raised a demand, was made to DoT though encashment of bank guarantees.

Now, RCom needs to renew encashed bank guarantees, payable in 2019. Earlier this month, the tribunal directed DoT to release ₹2,540 crore of bank guarantees provided by RCom in 2016 for spectrum.

The company had also approached the tribunal contesting the demand for bank guarantees for one-time spectrum charges (OTSC) due towards payment of market-linked prices for excess spectrum held by a telco, which DoT raised in late 2015.

RCom was also of the opinion that DoT held bank guarantees worth ₹2,540 crore, despite the tribunal’s order to return it, even as it raised a fresh ₹774-crore demand.

rajesh.kurup@thehindu.co.in

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