Tata Quippo to raise Rs 1500 cr via stake sale

Wireless Tata Tele Info Services, also known as Tata-Quippo, plans to raise up to Rs 1,500 crore by issuing fresh shares, Srei Infrastructure Finance chairman and managing director Hemant Kanoria said.

While Tata Tele holds a 55% stake in Tata-Quippo, a consortium led by Srei Infrastructure Finance holds the rest.

“Raising funds is an ongoing process. Tata-Quippo is in talks with both overseas and domestic investors to raise funds,” Kanoria said.

He confirmed media reports that Tata-Quippo was in talks with a fund set up by Australia-based Macquarie and State Bank of India for a likely stake sale.

Following issuance of fresh shares, the shareholding of existing investors in Tata-Quippo will be diluted by 2-5%.

Tata-Quippo was formed in 2009 through the merger of telecom towers belonging to Quippo Telecom Infrastructure and Tata Teleservices. Prior to the merger, Srei Infrastructure Finance owned Quippo Telecom Infra.

On Srei Infrastructure Finance’s expansion plans, Kanoria said the company is targeting growth in loan disbursals of 30-35% this financial year. “Last year, we had loan disbursals of around Rs 9,000 crore. This year, we are looking at disbursing around Rs 12,000-13,000 crore,” he said.