Bharti Airtel has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100 per cent equity stake in Augere Wireless Broadband India, to enhance its 4G base in India. Upon acquisition, Augere will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Airtel.

The acquisition is presently subject to the necessary statutory and regulatory approvals. The deal is likely to be valued at Rs 1.50 billion. With this acquisition, Airtel will be able to offer 4G services in 9 circles with Augere’s 20 MHz of broadband wireless access (BWA) spectrum in the Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh circle. Airtel has recently launched its 4G services commercially in 296 towns across 8 circles in India, ahead of the impending 4G launch by Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited (RJIL).

Augere, backed by French Telecom and several private equity funds, had bought the BWA spectrum for Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh circle in 2010 for an estimated Rs 1.25 million. However, it had later decided to shut India operations citing regulatory uncertainties related to spectrum auction and was planning to its license since 2012.