BENGALURU, Aug 14 Reuters India39;s Vodafone Idea reported a wider firstquarter loss on Monday, dragged by weak 4G subscriber growth and higher expenses.

The company39;s consolidated loss after tax stood at 78.40 billion rupees 942.8 million for the quarter ended June 30, compared to a loss of 72.97 billion rupees a year ago.

Formed in August 2018 as a merger between the Indian arm of UK39;s Vodafone and Aditya Birla Group39;s Idea Cellular, the telecom operator has posted a loss in every quarter since, as subscribers increasingly switched to rivals Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio.

The company39;s average revenue per user ARPU, a key metric for telecom firms, rose to 139 rupees from 135 rupees last quarter and 128 rupees in the yearago quarter, helped by subscriber migration to higher ARPU plans, it said.

Airtel39;s ARPU was at 200 rupees while Jio39;s ARPU was at 180.5 rupees.

Vodafone Idea39;s 4G subscriber base, too, barely inched up 0.2 to 122.9 million sequentially; its overall subscriber base shrunk to 221.4 million from 225.9 million sequentially.

Its expenses rose 4 yearonyear to 185.13 billion rupees, outpacing a 2.4 rise in revenue to 106.56 billion rupees, while net debt stood at 2.12 trillion rupees as of June 30.

Burdened with massive government debt and spectrum dues, Vodafone Idea has been unable to ink a fundraising deal. In April, billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla returned to the company39;s board, raising hopes that the Birla Group might infuse…