Telenor Pakistan is the only operator that submitted a bid for spectrum auction in 2100 MHz band in Azad Jammu & Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, and will be awarded the spectrum at a base price of $0.87 million.
Sources told ProPakistani that Telenor Pakistan had submitted bids for the 15 MHz spectrum in 2100 MHz, and the other three operators — Jazz, Zong, and Ufone — had decided not to participate in the auction for 2100 MHz.
The 15 MHz spectrum in the 2100 MHz band will remain unsold, revealed the sources
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority had invited applications from cellular mobile operators for the 16 MHz paired spectrum in the 1800 MHz band and the 30 MHz paired spectrum in the 2100 MHz band for technology-neutral Next Generation Mobile Service in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).
It had issued a statement saying that the auction for the 1800 MHz band would be conducted on 28 September in line with the auction rules published in the Information of Memorandum, and no electronic auction would be conducted in the 2100 MHz band.
In accordance with the timelines mentioned in Information Memorandum (IM) for the Spectrum Auction for the Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS) in AJK and GB 2021, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) received bids from CMPAK (Zong), PMCL (Jazz), PTML (Ufone), and Telenor Pakistan on 22 September for both the 1800 and 2100 MHz spectrum bands.
After scrutinizing the submitted bids, the PTA declared the four bidders as ‘qualified’.
The current spectrum auction will provide improved quality of services to the consumers of AJK and GB, and will enhance the coverage footprint for Voice and Data services. This will positively impact the tourism sector of the regions.
The total revenue generated and final auction results will be declared after the completion of the auction on 28 September.
The PTA is conducting the auction process with the assistance of internationally reputed consultant JV Telconet/ Frontier Economics that has been on board since April, and has conducted thorough consultations with the cellular industry and other stakeholders.