The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) said it has set in motion modalities to auction the remaining 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) spectrum for the deployment of Five Generation (5G) networks in the country.
NCC, which is the regulatory authority for the telecommunications industry in the country, has published the draft information memorandum on the auction of the remaining 3.5 GHz spectrum.
The information memorandum defines the process that the Commission will adopt for the licensing of the remaining 3.5 GHz spectrum.
It also provides information on the Nigerian communications market, details of the spectrum on offer, the pre-qualification process, the auction process, and indicative timetable.
Barring any last-minute amendments by the NCC, the action of the remaining 3.5 GHz spectrum for the deployment of 5G in the country will hold on December 19, 2022, at a yet-to-be-determined venue with a mock auction expected on December 16, 2022.
The auction closure will occur when the public announcement is made by the auction overseer/manager, revealing the provisional winners to be awarded the licenses under the process, at which point each successful bidder will automatically be deemed to have been awarded a provisional license.
However, to stand a chance, Airtel, Glo, 9mobile, and any other interested telecom firms are expected to pay a mandatory Intention-To-Bid Deposit (IBD) of $27,360,000.00 tentatively by December 5, 2022, which is also the tentative deadline for the submission of applications for the auction.
According to the draft information memorandum, the NCC is offering the remaining lots of the 100MHz in the 3.5GHz spectrum band to support 5G deployment in Nigeria in order to ensure reliable communications services and innovative digital technologies in the country.
Source: Guardian
