Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) expects to earn Rs 4 billion-Rs 5 billion during the first year of leasing of its land holdings.

The government has been trying to revive the loss-making unit for several years and leasing of its vast base of land parcels has been identified as one of the measures to improve BSNL’s financial health. Accordingly, BSNL plans to offer seven out of 10 identified land parcels on lease of 30-90 years for commercial or residential projects. Bidders will be asked to make an upfront down payment, while the balance will be recovered in installments over a five-year span.

BSNL holds one of the largest base of land holdings amongst various state-owned companies. The properties, present across 3,500 towns in India, are estimated to be valued at several billion of rupees. Earlier this year, BSNL had identified 82 land parcels, valued at Rs 134.39 billion, that it would offer for long-term lease to generate revenue.

Further, BSNL is also planning to offer its telecom factories to third-party contract manufacturers for revenue generation. BSNL has seven telecom factories across India and it plans to initially offer the one in Mumbai to contract manufacturers.

BSNL is also awaiting Cabinet approval to hive off its 61,622 mobile towers into a separate, wholly-owned unit, and thereafter, bring in a private joint venture partner in line with the recommendations of an empowered group of ministers.