Airtel did not acquire 700 MHz spectrum in India’s first 5G spectrum sale in July 2022
Indian telco Bharti Airtel said it won’t buy airwaves in the 700 MHz band in the next 5G spectrum sale, according to local press reports.
The company noted it will only focus on the acquisition of frequencies in those markets where its spectrum holdings are expiring in 2024.
Bharti Airtel will refarm its spectrum in the 1800 MHz and 2.1 GHz bands once 25-30% smart devices in circulation become 5G-enabled from around 10-12% now, according to BofASecurities, which participated at SingTel’s analyst day event that hosted Bharti Airtel’s CEO Gopal Vittal and CFO Soumen Ray.
“Airtel’s management continued to highlight that the company has no intention to buy the 700MHz spectrum and that it would only look to buy small spectrum in pockets where current holdings may be expiring,” BofA said, quoting the views of Airtel’s senior management.
Airtel’s spectrum in the 900 MHz and 1,800 MHz bands will expire in 2024 in West Bengal, UP-East, UP-West, Bihar, Odisha, Assam, Northeast and J&K.
Airtel did not acquire 700 MHz spectrum in India’s first 5G spectrum sale in July 2022, claiming that its existing spectrum holdings in the mid-band coupled with the new 5G airwaves bought in the 3.3 GHz and 26 GHz bands were sufficient for the provision of quality 5G services across the country.
The Indian government recently started the process for auctioning the next round of 5G spectrum, sending a reference to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) seeking reserve price for various bands.
According to government officials, all the unsold frequencies from last year’s spectrum auction, as well as some additional frequencies in the 37 GHz band, will be put up on sale.
The DoT has excluded the 6 GHz from the upcoming sale. Local operators are asking the government to award this spectrum band for the provision of telecom services while tech companies want this band for the provision of Wi-Fi, according to the report. The DoT still has to make a final decision on this issue.
Trai will now study the reference from the DoT and come out with a consultation paper on the issue in the coming weeks, the report adds.
The report also stated that local operators Reliance Jio Infocomm and Bharti Airtel could probably be the sole bidders as Vodafone Idea lacks the funds to bid in the process.
India completed its first 5G spectrum auction last year. Reliance Jio walked away with the most spectrum, having spent $11 billion. Airtel won spectrum worth $5.4 billion, while Vodafone received spectrum worth $2.4 billion. Finally, Adani purchased spectrum worth approximately $27 million, which it will use to offer private 5G network services.
