ISLAMABAD
The government would once again hold the auction of 3G/4G telecom licences during upcoming financial year 2014-15 as Finance Ministry has kept Rs 56 billion in non-tax revenue in budget that would be generated from auction of telecom licences.
Sources in Finance Ministry informed The Nation that government would start the process of the telecom licences after getting approval from the Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif. However, the government has kept Rs 56 billion in non-tax revenue in the budget, which would be fetched through the selling process of licences.
The government has two licences, 4G and 2G, to offer for the auction during upcoming financial year 2014-15. One licence of 4G with a base price of $210 million and another licence exclusively kept for a new entrant (2G) with a base price of $291 million. Therefore, the government is expecting to generate approximately Rs 56 billion through this process.
The overall revenue to be generated from telecom licences would reach to Rs 167 billion after government completed second phase of the auction that is much higher than the expectations of Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar who was expecting Rs 120 billion.
The government has fetched Rs 111 billion in the first phase and would generate Rs 56 billion in second phase making total at Rs 167 billion.
The government in April 2014 had hold the first ever auction in the country, as the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had offered three bands for the 3G spectrum - with a total available frequency of 30MHz - and two bands for the 4G spectrum. Out of the four competitors participating in the auction, only Zong managed to secure licences for both 3G and 4G spectrums; the other three - Mobilink, Telenor and Ufone - secured only 3G licences.
The $1.112 billion (Rs 111 billion) that the country has earned from the sale is just $17 million or 1.6pc higher than the reserve price of $1.095 billion for these licences. The mobile companies have started giving 3G services to its customers in the country. The introduction of 3G/4G technology would generate over 9 million jobs besides providing other facilities.