India’s cabinet on Wednesday approved the sale of a small amount of 2.1-GHz spectrum at the country’s upcoming frequency auction at prices proposed by the Department of Telecommunications’ (DoT’s) Telecom Commission.
The move means that the auction of 800-MHz, 900-MHz and 1800-MHz spectrum will include 5 MHz of 2.1-GHz spectrum in 17 licensed service areas, the government announced in a statement. The reserve price will be 37.05 billion rupees (€531 million) per MHz.
The base price was set by the Telecom Commission earlier this month despite opposition from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), which has repeatedly called for a lower reserve price of INR27.2 billion per MHz in a bid to encourage participation in the auction and bring about competitive bidding.
The TRAI also urged the government to include an additional 15 MHz of 2.1-GHz airwaves in the auction that is due to be freed up by the defence ministry, pointing out that selling only 5 MHz will artificially inflate prices. However, the government is sticking to its guns and plans to sell the remaining spectrum at a later date.
In its statement, the cabinet said it expects to generate revenues of INR175.55 billion from the sale of 2.1-GHz frequencies, of which it will recognise INR57.93 billion in the current financial year.
The auction was due to begin in late February, but this week the DoT postponed the start date until 4 March. Bidders now have until 16 February to submit applications to take part in the auction.
