New Delhi. Telecom companies showed interest in four spectrum bands 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz and 2,500 MHz on the first day of spectrum auction. Sources gave this information. They said that the auction which started on Tuesday morning entered the fourth round at around 3 pm. According to an official statement, the spectrum auction worth more than Rs 96,238 crore for 10,500 MHz mobile services started at 10 am.
A source told PTI-Bhasha, “Initially interest was shown in four spectrum bands 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz and 2,500 MHz. The spectrum auction entered the fourth round at around 3 pm.” This is the 10th spectrum auction since the sale process of radio waves started online in 2010. The last auction was held in August 2022, in which radio waves were introduced for 5G services for the first time. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has started the spectrum auction. For this, a Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) was issued on March 8.
According to the statement, “The Ministry of Communications has announced that bids will be made for 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz, 2,300 MHz, 2,500 MHz, 3,300 MHz and 26 GHz spectrum bands in the upcoming auction.” It said, “The total amount of spectrum to be put up for auction in various bands is 10,522.35 MHz. Its reserve price is Rs 96,238.45 crore.” It is worth noting that the 3,300 MHz band and 26 MHz band are being considered suitable bands for 5G services.
Reliance Jio has deposited the highest earnest money of Rs 3,000 crore for the spectrum auction. On this basis, the company can bid for maximum radio waves. According to the Department of Telecommunications, Bharti Airtel has deposited Rs 1,050 crore and Vodafone Idea (VIL) has deposited Rs 300 crore as earnest money. Debt-ridden Vodafone Idea Limited may focus on strategic acquisitions, especially in the 26 GHz band, to reduce its spectrum usage charges.