Airtel and Hughes form Joint Venture to provide satellite broadband services in India

India’s largest private sector telecom company by market capitalization, Bharti Airtel Ltd now holds 33% stake in Hughes Communications India Private Limited w.e.f. January 04, 2022. Combined India VSAT operations of both companies to offer a wide range of satellite and hybrid network solutions to business and government customers.

The joint venture will be operational as HCIPL combining the Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) businesses of both companies to offer flexible and scalable enterprise networking solutions using satellite connectivity for primary transport, backup and hybrid implementation.

The agreement, announced in May 2019, has received all statutory approvals, including those from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and Department of Telecom (Government of India) and the joint venture has been formed.

The cost of acquisition of the 33% stake in Hughes Communications India Private Limited (HCIPL) is Rs 99.75 crore in aggregate.

“With the combined capabilities of Airtel and Hughes, customers will get access to next-generation satellite connectivity backed by proven enterprise-grade security and service support”, remarked the CEO of Airtel business Ajay Chitkara on the joint venture.

HCIPL is a majority-owned subsidiary of Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES), the leading global provider of broadband satellite networks and services. HCIPL is the largest satellite service operator in India providing a comprehensive range of broadband networking technologies, solutions, and services for businesses and governments, including Managed Services to meet every communications challenge.

The telecom companies gained a new lease of life by the Government bailout package. This has led to Bharti Airtel withdrawing its proposed scheme for a new corporate structure that has been announced in April last year.

Bharti Airtel Limited is a leading global telecommunications company with operations in many countries across Asia and Africa. The company ranks amongst the top 3 mobile service providers globally in terms of subscribers. In India, the company's product offerings include 2G, 3G and 4G wireless services, mobile commerce, fixed line services, high-speed home broadband, DTH, enterprise services including national & international long distance services to carriers. Recently, the telecom major announced the withdrawal of its proposed scheme for a new corporate structure ( announced in April last year)led by the seminal telecom sector reforms package announced by the Government of India With a strong balance sheet and 5G ready network, Bharti is well-positioned to invest aggressively in the emerging growth opportunities offered by India’s digital economy.

The shares of Bharti Airtel were trading at Rs 700 with a gain of 0.37 per cent at 2.35 pm today.