CENTRE SELLS AIRWAVES WORTH OVER ₹77,800 CR AS SPECTRUM AUCTION ENDS
Jio bought ₹57,122 cr worth of spectrum, with Airtel acquiring radiowaves worth ₹18,699 cr, while Vi picked up ₹1,993.4 cr worth of airwaves
India’s first auction of telecom spectrum in five years ended on Tuesday with ₹77,814.80 crore of airwaves being bought, mostly by billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio.
Over 2,250 MHz of spectrum, that carry telecom signals, in seven bands worth nearly ₹4 lakh crore at the reserve or start price, was offered for bidding in the auction that began on Monday. Telecom secretary Anshu Prakash said 855.60 MHz of spectrum was bought for ₹77,814.80 crore in the two-day auction.
Reliance Jio bought ₹57,122.65 crore worth of spectrum, Bharti Airtel picked up radiowaves worth ₹18,699 crore and Vodafone Idea Ltd picked ₹1,993.40 crore worth of airwaves.
Bids were received in 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz and 2,300 MHz bands but there were no takers for the airwaves in the premium 700 and 2,500 MHz bands.
About one-third of the spectrum being auctioned is in the 700 MHz band, which was completely unsold during the 2016 auctions.
India’s first auction of telecom spectrum in five years ended on Tuesday with ₹77,814.80 crore of airwaves being bought, mostly by Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio.
Over 2,250 MHz of spectrum, that carry telecom signals, in seven bands worth nearly ₹4 lakh crore at the reserve or start price, was offered for bidding in the auction that began on Monday. Telecom secretary Anshu Prakash said 855.60 MHz of spectrum was bought for ₹77,814.80 crore in the two-day auction.
Reliance Jio bought ₹57,122.65 crore worth of spectrum while Vodafone Idea Ltd picked ₹1,993.40 crore worth of airwaves. Bids were received in 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz and 2300 MHz bands but there were no takers for the airwaves in the premium 700 and 2500 MHz bands.
About one-third of the spectrum being auctioned is in the 700 MHz band, which was completely unsold during the 2016 auctions. This, analysts said, was mostly because operators are unlikely to diversify into a new spectrum band that would require incremental investment in equipment, when other subGHz bands are available at lower prices.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel said it has acquired radiowaves worth ₹18,699 crore in the latest spectrum auction.
The telco has acquired 355.45 MHz spectrum across sub GHz, mid band and 2300 MHz bands, giving it “most formidable” spectrum holding in the country, the company said in a statement. All the spectrum will enable Airtel to deliver 5G services in future, it added.
The telco has now secured pan-India foot print of sub GHz spectrum that will help improve its deep indoor and in building coverage in every urban town. Moreover, the spectrum will also help improve its coverage in villages, the statement noted.
Airtel pointed out that despite the large amount of spectrum made available, the 700 MHz band did not get any bid from the operators as it made “no economic case” for them due to the high reserve prices.
“The 700 MHz band coupled with the 3.5 GHz band has the potential to accelerate India’s progress to the top league of digitally enabled nations. Therefore, the reserve pricing of these bands must be addressed on priority in future,” Airtel said.
Gopal Vittal, managing director and chief executive officer ( India and South Asia), Bharti Airtel said, the company now has a “solid spectrum portfolio that will enable it to continue delivering the best mobile broadband experience in India”. “We are most excited at bringing the power of Airtel services to an additional 90 million customers in India through the power of our pan-India sub GHz footprint,” Vittal added.
Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea Ltd ( Vi) said that spectrum acquired by it in five circles will help boost 4G coverage and capacity, enabling the company to offer “superior digital experience” for its customers.
In a statement on Tuesday, Vi said it has used “this opportunity to optimise spectrum holding post-merger to create further efficiencies in few circles”.
With the industry gearing up for 5G play, Vi hoped that large quantum of spectrum in globally harmonised bands would be made available for all operators at fair prices. “Vodafone Idea entered this auction holding the largest quantum of spectrum with a very small fraction, which was administratively allocated and used for GSM services, coming up for renewal,” it said.