Debt-laden Reliance Communications’ (RCom) proposal to sell infrastructure assets including towers, optic fibre cable and spectrum to Reliance Jio has been cleared by the Competition Commission of India (CCI). Also Read - Reliance Jio records highest 4G download speeds in Dec 2020: TRAI
“@CCI_India approves acquisition of RCOM’s towers, optic fiber cable, right to use spectrum and media convergence nodes by RJIO,” the anti-trust regulator tweeted. Also Read - DoT announces auction date for spectrum sale in India; Jio, Airtel, Vi expected to bid
In December 2017, Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio had signed a pact to acquire the mobile business assets that includes spectrum, mobile towers and optical fibre network of RCom-owned by his younger brother Anil Ambani. Also Read - Airtel vs Jio vs Vodafone Idea: Best prepaid plans offering 3GB daily data
While neither Jio nor RCom had divulged the size of the deal, sources have pegged the transaction value at Rs 18,000 crore.
RCom statement, at that time, had said the deal packs in 122.4 MHz of 4G spectrum in the 800/900/1800/2100 MHz bands, over 43,000 towers, 1,78,000 kilometres of fibre and 248 media convergence nodes.
At the time of the deal announcement, the companies had also said that the transaction is likely to be completed in a phased manner by March 2018.
However, an arbitration panel in an interim order recently, has restrained RCom from asset sale or transfer, without its “specific permission”.
This is published unedited from the PTI feed.