Ericsson, Nokia not ready to supply 5G equipment to Vi on credit: Report

In a development that can deepen the troubles for financially stressed telco Vodafone Idea (Vi), European telecom gear makers Ericsson and Nokia have refused to provide it with the 5G equipment on credit, The Economic Times (ET) reported on Thursday.

It added that Vi is yet to place the order of 5G equipment with these makers and is currently seeking a relaxation in payment norms.  

"Vi already owes Rs 3,500-4,000 crore to the vendors, and while partial payments are being made, the company is not yet near to clearing the total dues," a person aware of the matter was quoted in the report as saying.

Recently, Ericsson provided the telco with 2G radios, but only after it made the entire payment.

Vi, according to ET, is also in talks with Mavenir and South Korea's Samsung for 5G equipment. The equipment from Mavenir is being used for trials in Karnataka circle.

Ericsson and Nokia are among the top suppliers of 5G equipment to Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, which are making rapid strides in ramping up their networks.

Both these equipment suppliers are the beneficiaries of the Centre's production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme. Nokia has its own manufacturing facility here and Jabil makes the equipment for Ericsson.

Vi's financial troubles have also made it difficult for the telco to retain its users. According to the data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), it lost 2.9 million subscribers in April.

On the other hand, Reliance Jio gained 3 million new users. Bharti Airtel added 76,328 subscribers during the month.