Vodafone Idea shares jumped 4% today; here is why

Vodafone Idea Ltd (Vi) shares surged 4.15 per cent in Thursday's trade to hit a high of Rs 7.27. The stock was last seen trading 3.72 per cent up at Rs 7.24. At this price, it has climbed 10.53 per cent in the last five sessions.

Today's upward move came after CNBC-TV18 reported the telecom operator has filed a fresh plea in the Supreme Court seeking further relief on its adjusted gross revenue (AGR) and spectrum dues. Vi is reportedly seeking a waiver of over Rs 30,000 crore on penalty and interest. 

Separately, Vi said it will start high-speed 5G services in Delhi-NCR from today. "The capital region joins Vi's growing 5G footprint as part of the initial phase of the rollout, which has already seen launches in Mumbai, Chandigarh and Patna. The telco is all set to roll out 5G in all 17 priority circles, where it has acquired 5G spectrum, by August this year," the telco stated in an exchange filing.

Last month, the government officially raised its stake in Vi to 48.99 per cent from 22.60 per cent by converting a part of the spectrum payment dues into equity shares worth Rs 36,950 crore.

This followed the government's 2021 telecom relief package announcement. Despite the Centre's stake raise, operational control will stay with the promoters -- UK's Vodafone Plc and the Aditya Birla Group (ABG).

Vodafone UK's stake in Vi declined to around 16.1 per cent from about 24.4 per cent before the said transaction, while ABG's ownership slipped to 9.4 per cent from nearly 14 per cent previously.

Earlier in February 2023, the government had converted Vi debt of about Rs 16,130 crore, comprising interest arising from the deferment of AGR and spectrum installments, into equity.

Vi was formed in 2018 when Vodafone Group Plc merged its India business with Idea Cellular.