Tulip Telecom in debt recast talks

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Tulip Telecom Ltd, which defaulted on a $140 million convertible bond redemption in August, said on Monday it is in talks with lenders to restructure its long-term debt.

Tulip, which designs and manages communication networks of large enterprises, is negotiating for a moratorium on principal and interest payments with banks, and extending the repayment period, which could help ease the debt and interest burden, it said in a statement.

Tulip had consolidated debt of 30.3 billion rupees at end-September. It was not clear how much of this amount will be restructured by banks.

"The near-term outlook is mixed, considering liquidity constraints and a volatile market environment, despite strong business fundamentals," Chairman H.S. Bedi said in a statement to stock exchanges.

Tulip joins a long list of Indian companies that have turned to the corporate debt restructuring mechanism, a voluntary process whereby creditors approve an easing of repayment terms.

Last month, lenders to Indian wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy Ltd agreed to restructure about 110 billion rupees of its debt, sources said.

(Reporting by Prashant Mehra; Editing by Sunil Nair)