Rcom, aircel to bid separately in spectrum auction

Telecom operators Reliance Communications (RCom) and Aircel, which had announced their merger on the last date of submission of the spectrum auction application, plan to bid separately in the upcoming spectrum auction where all the 7 applicants – Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular, Vodafone, Tata Teleservices, RComand Aircel, have made it to the final list of bidders. According to the information released by the DoT – Department of Telecom, none of the applicants withdrew their application. The last date for application withdrawal was 22nd September.

Bidding Eligibility points of Different Telecom Operators:

• RCom is eligible to bid for spectrum across the country apart from North East and Assam. RCom has been allocated 2,158 eligibility points. The company has submitted an EMD of Rs.313 cr.
• There are is list of restrictions on bidding eligibility of Aircel. The company isn’t allowed to bid for spectrum in premium 700 Mhz, 800 Mhz and 2500 Mhz in any of the circle. It is eligible for bidding in 13 out of the 22 circles for 3G spectrum (2100 Mhz) which include Uttar Pradesh (East), Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka etc. Aircel can only bid for spectrum in 900 Mhz and 1800 Mhz band across all the circles. Aircel has been allocated 792 eligibility points. The company has submitted an EMD of Rs.120 cr.
• The novel entrant Reliance Jio – telecom venture of nation’s richest man for ninth year in a row with a sharp rise in net worth to 22.7 billion dollars, Mukesh Ambani has been allocated the highest eligibility point of 44,506, and is allowed to bid in any band in any service area. Reliance Jio is the only applicant which has the potential to bid for pan-India airwaves in premium 700 Mhz band for mobile services. The company which has unshackled a price war in the Indian subcontinent with its disruptive offerings, last week submitted the highest EMD – earnest money deposit for the auction at Rs.6,500 cr.
• Vodafone, which has accumulated Rs.47,700-cr war chest with fresh equity flowing in from the parent ahead of the auctions, has been allocated 18,821 eligibility points, and can bid in any band in any part of the country for airwaves.
• Tata Teleservices (TTSL) – 6,919 (eligibility points) ; submitted an EMD of Rs.1000 cr.

The Dream Band of 700 Mhz:This is the very first time that the government will auction the 700 Mhz band, which is considered to be the most premium as the cost estimation of providing service through it is close to one-third of 3G under the 2,100 Mhz band. A company planning to buy spectrum in 700 Mhz band will have to shell out a minimum of Rs.57,425 cr. Total spectrum worth Rs.4,01,975 cr in 700 Mhz band is being put up for auction by the government.

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