A record over Rs.1.5 lakh crore worth of 5G telecom spectrum was sold in a seven-day auction ending on 7th day, which saw Mukesh Ambani’s Jio emerging as the top bidder to consolidate its leadership position.
Sources said provisional data puts the total bids at Rs. 1,50,173 crore.
The 5G spectrum, capable of offering ultra-high speed mobile Internet connectivity, is almost double at Rs. 77,815 crore worth 4G airwaves sold 2021 and triple of Rs. 50,968.37 crore garner from a 3G auction in 2010.
Reliance Jio was the top bidder to the airwaves capable of offering speeds about 10 times faster than 4G, lag-free connectivity, and can enable billions of connect devices to share data in real-time.
It was follow by Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea.
New entrant Adani group is said to have bought 26 Mhz spectrum for setting up a private telecom network.
As per sources details of which company bought how much spectrum would be known once the data from the auction is fully compile.
Both Airtel and Jio have likely built a pan-India spectrum footprint for 5G, with Vodafone Idea’s selective participation.
Government had put on offer spectrum in 10 bands but receive no bids for airwaves in 600 MHz, 800 MHz and 2300 MHz bands.
About two-thirds of the bids were for the 5G bands (3300 Mhz and 26 GHz), and more than a quarter of the demand came in the 700 Mhz band a band that had gone unsold in the previous two auctions (2016 and 2021).
In the auction conduct 2021, that had last for two days, Reliance Jio pick up spectrum worth Rs. 57,122.65 crore, Bharti Airtel bid about Rs. 18,699 crore, and Vodafone Idea bought spectrum worth Rs. 1,993.40 crore.
In 2022, a total of 72 GHz (gigahertz) of radiowaves worth at least Rs. 4.3 lakh crore was put on the block.
The auction was held for spectrum in various low (600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz), mid (3300 MHz) and high (26 GHz) frequency bands.
In addition to powering ultra-low latency connections, which allow downloading full-length high-quality video or movie to a mobile device in a matter of seconds (even in crowded areas), Fifth Generation or 5G would enable solutions such as e-health, connect vehicles, more-immersive augment reality and metaverse experiences, life-saving use cases, and advance mobile cloud gaming among many others.
The auction garner bids worth Rs. 1.45 lakh crore on the first day on 26th July 2022, with subsequent days seeing only marginal incremental demand in some circles.
India’s first-ever auction for 5G spectrum enter the 7th day on Monday with players including Jio and Airtel being lock in an intense bidding for coveted 1800 Mhz frequencies mainly for the UP East circle.
The cumulative spectrum sale cross the Rs. 1.50 lakh crore milestone on the 6th day of bidding on Sunday.
The bidding price and demand for spectrum in the UP East circle flare up once again on Sunday, after the situation ease a bit on the previous day.
In the 6th days of auction of the 5G spectrum capable of offering ultra-high-speed internet, bids worth Rs. 1,50,130 crore have been receive.
Seven new rounds of bidding held on Sunday `dialled in’ an incremental Rs. 163 crore.
Monday marks the 7th day of auction, and the 38th round of bidding is currently underway.
Sources said that after a relative easing of demand on Saturday, the UP East circle, which includes Lucknow, Allahabad, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, and Kanpur, saw bidding action picking up once again for 1800 MHz, a band primarily used by telcos for 4G services.
UP East, which has over 10 crore mobile subscribers account for all of the incremental spectrum sales on Sunday, amid a pitched battle for radiowaves among players such as Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel.
The all-out battle for spectrum in this band in the UP East market, push its auction prices to over Rs. 160 crore per MHz against the reserve price of Rs. 91 crore per MHz, breaching the base price levels of the 2021 auction (Rs 153 crore).
As of May, Reliance Jio had 3.29 crore mobile subscribers in UP East, Bharti Airtel (3.7 crore) and Vodafone Idea (2.02 crore).
The bidding intensity for the 1800 MHz band in Uttar Pradesh East circle had peak between Wednesday and Friday, then subside somewhat on Saturday.
On Sunday renew interest was demand flare once again outstripping the spectrum supply, sources said.
All the three private operators are said to be keen on topping up their holdings in this band in UP East, as radiowaves in 900 MHz band are not available.
The 2022 auction timelines would depend on how the bidding progresses through the day, and if any player relents.
Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had earlier said the 5G auction underscore that industry wants to expand and had enter a growth phase.
The reserve price fix for spectrum is a “fair number” and the same is visible from the auction outcome, Ashwini Vaishnaw assert.
Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio, Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and a unit of Gautam Adani’s flagship Adani Enterprises are in the race to bid for the 5G spectrum, which offers speeds about 10 times faster than 4G, lag-free connectivity and can enable billions of connect devices to share data in real-time.
Besides powering ultra-low latency connections, which allow downloading full-length high-quality video or movie to a mobile device in a matter of seconds (even in crowded areas), the Fifth Generation or 5G would enable solutions such as e-health, connect vehicles, more-immersive augment reality and metaverse experiences, life-saving use cases, and advance mobile cloud gaming, among many others.
About 71% of the total spectrum put on the block had provisionally sold.
After a flying start on Tuesday that saw players pouring in Rs. 1.45 lakh crore on the first day, the numbers have inch up incrementally since Wednesday, with players such as Jio and Airtel lock in intense bidding in Uttar Pradesh East circle for 1800 MHz band.
This has shift the auction duration beyond what was previously anticipate.
In all, 72 GHz (gigahertz) of radiowaves worth at least Rs 4.3 lakh crore is on the block in the 2022 auction.
The auction is being held for spectrum in various low (600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz), mid (3300 MHz) and high (26 GHz) frequency bands.
