Vodafone Idea Ltd’s (VIL) consolidated net loss rose to ₹6,438.8 crore in the third quarter ended December 31, 2019, an increase from ₹5,004.6 crore posted during the comparable year-ago period.

This is much lower compared with the whopping ₹50,921.9-crore net loss posted during the sequential second quarter (July-September), its biggest-ever quarterly net loss, impacted mainly by Adjusted Gross Revenues (AGR) provisions.

For the quarter under review, the company posted a 2.3 per cent rise in revenue to ₹11,089.4 crore from ₹10,844 crore recorded during the sequential second quarter. The revenue growth was supported by strong growth in 4G additions and average daily revenue, the company said in a statement.

However, Q3 revenues fell compared with ₹11,760 crore recorded during the third quarter ended December 31, 2018.

“We continue to actively engage with the government seeking relief on AGR and other matters. Post dismissal of our review petition, we have filed for modification of the supplementary order with the Supreme Court. At the same time, we remain focused on rapid networks integration as well as 4G coverage and capacity expansion in our key markets,” said Ravinder Takkar, Managing Director and CEO, Vodafone Idea.

The company’s 4G net additions were at 8.3 million during the quarter, taking its total 4G subscriber base to 104.2 million. With the launch of Uttar Pradesh (W) circle in Q3, VIL’s Long Term Evolution 900 rollout was expanded to 9 circles.

“We now lead the league tables on 4G data download speeds across several States, metros and large cities. We believe this is leading to improved customer experience, which has contributed to robust 4G subscriber additions. As a result, after several quarters of pressure on topline, we witnessed consistent revenue turnaround from September onwards, that is before the recent price hikes,” he said, adding, the tariff hike (effective December) should further help in improving revenue going forward.

The company has recognised ₹52.8 crore as exceptional items during the quarter, including license fee and spectrum charges.

During the quarter, the company’s Average Revenue Per User (ARPU), a financial metric for a telecom company, rose to ₹109 from ₹107 in Q2FY20 supported by an improvement in customer mix.

Vodafone’s subscriber base fell to 304 million in Q3 from 311 million in Q2, while user churn further reduced during the reporting quarter to 3.3 per cent (from 3.5 per cent in Q2).

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