Lifeline: MTNL narrows Q1 loss to Rs 731 crore

STATE-run telecom firm MTNL has reported narrowing of standalone loss to Rs 730.64 crore in the second quarter ended September 30, 2017 mainly on account of reduction in employees remuneration and benefits. The PSU had posted a loss of Rs 768.32 crore in the same period a year ago.
The employees remuneration and benefits, which accounts for about 70-80 per cent of MTNLs total income, reduced to Rs 623.19 crore in the reported...
quarter from Rs 699 crore a year ago. The total income of MTNL declined by around 9 per cent to Rs 791.1 crore in the second quarter of current fiscal from Rs 870.98 crore it reported in the same period of 2016-17. The finance cost of the company increased to Rs 366.22 crore from Rs 359.05 crore during the period under review.
The PSU earned Rs 549.5 crore from basic services but posted a loss of Rs 288.4 crore in the segment before interest income, exceptional items, finance cost and tax in July- September 2017. The loss from cellular service in the similar category was Rs 117.4 crore while it earned Rs 94.12 crore from the segment in the reported quarter.
Earlier, pitching for merger of BSNL and MTNL, MTNL CMD P K Purwar described the merger as "desirable" for operational synergy and even the fiercely- competitive telecom market needs such a combination for a stronger pan-India play. His comment assumes importance in the wake of latest renewed push for BSNL-MTNL merger with a...
Parliamentary panel report recently saying that the Telecom Department plans to place the merger proposal before the Cabinet by June.
"The industry is consolidating. It is not an issue of BSNL and MTNL...for any operator to succeed in India a pan India operation is a must," MTNL CMD PK Purwar told a news agency. Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) offers services in Delhi and Mumbai. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), on the other hand, operates across rest of India.
In 2015-16, MTNL posted total annual revenue of Rs 3,197.41 crore and net loss of Rs 2,005.72 crore.
The total debt of MTNL reached Rs 19,418.23 crore at the end of December 31, 2016, according to official data.
BSNL and MTNL had a market share of about 9 per cent of the total wireless subscriber base of 1.12 billion, as of December 31, 2016 as per telecom regulator TRAI.