The government completed its 5G spectrum auction in Islamabad on Tuesday, with 480 megahertz sold for $507 million at the end of the third round of bidding.
The three bidders — Zong, Jazz and Ufone — competed heavily at 2600 megahertz for the key frequency band needed for the 5G service. Zong acquired 110MHz, Ufone 180MHz and Jazz 190MHz during the auction.
Pakistan offered 700 MHz for $32.5 million, 1800 MHz for $16.8m, 2100 MHz for $70m, 2300 MHz for $10m, 2600 MHz for $12.50m and 3500 MHz for $6.5m per lot.
The bidding process was launched in the presence of Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Information Minister Attaullah Tarrar, former IT minister Syed Aminul Haque, and the chairperson of the National Assembly Standing Committee on IT and Telecom, along with some members of the committee.
After the first round of bidding, the compiled results were opened. The PTA had offered 190MHz in lots of 10MHz each, while the bidders demanded 30 lots. Eleven extra lots totalling 110MHz were made available for auction. The PTA has decided to increase the bid price of the 2600MHz band by five per cent of its base price.
For the other 5G band — 3500MHz — 28 lots of 10MHz were offered but the telecom companies placed bids for only 20 lots. A break preceded both the second and the third round of bidding.
Addressing the event, Aurangzeb thanked all the members of the spectrum committee and gave credit to the IT minister for ensuring the continuity of the IT policy resulting in the spectrum auction despite changing administrations.
Regarding how the auction was going to be “an enabler”, he said, “I’ve always said digital is not an end in itself; it’s a means to an end. Faster, cheaper, better — it’s as simple as that.”
He added, “When we talk about jobs, when we talk about [how] the private sector has to lead the country, this is exactly what the government should be doing … providing the ecosystem and helping out.
“And of course, as we move towards the new economy — whether it’s AI, whether it’s blockchain, whether its Web 3.0 — all of this is going to be helped in terms of the spectrum availability and as we move into 5G.”
The finance minister also referred to the announcement of austerity measures by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif yesterday, saying, “This is where all of this becomes extremely critical, in terms of crisis, to move seamlessly into online education [and] working from home.”
He expressed his belief that the greater spectrum and better connectivity would help the country in terms of a “seamless transition as we negotiate the current oil crisis”.
IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja called the auction “maybe one of the most important days in the history of Pakistan”. She said that during the era of former premier Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan had entered the era of 3G and 4G for the first time, but no major auctions had been held since then, as a result of which the country was experiencing challenges with connectivity.
Shaza added that alongside 5G being introduced for the first time in Pakistan, the nation would also see an increase in the quality of 4G connectivity.
She said that the internet formed the foundation of every aspect of life, “from personal life to economy, agriculture, industry, all the way to national security … a fast, reliable internet that is available to every Pakistani citizen has become a foundational requirement for us”.
The IT minister compared Pakistan’s spectrum availability to that of Bangladesh, which despite having only two-thirds of Pakistan’s population had 600MHz to Pakistan’s 274MHz availability. She also said that Pakistan had run on these 274MHz since 1997.
“Even if we just do the base auction successfully, our spectrum availability will double,” she said.
“I know people’s first question is always ‘When will we feel the impact of this?’ So in four or five months, you will see significantly better quality in your 4G services,” she said, adding that efforts were being made to ensure 5G introduced in the five big cities within five to six months.
Shaza lauded the efforts of former IT minister Aminul Haque for laying the groundwork for the spectrum auction. She also highlighted PM Shehbaz’ “personal drive” and vision for ‘Digital Nation Pakistan’, saying, “All these things are possible through his drive and dedication.”
The minister said that apart from the spectrum auction, the government was working at three other important segments of digitisation: satellite based internet to provide coverage in remote and inaccessible areas; linking Pakistan with international cable systems to make it an internet transit country, and the spread of fibre networks in country.
In this regard, the government had already abolished the right of way charges, becoming the first country in Asia to do so. This would improve the quality of connectivity across the country and reduce the cost of internet in the long term, she said.
During a background briefing held on Monday, the IT minister had stated that efforts had been made to ensure that all three stakeholders benefitted from the spectrum auction. She added that mock exercises with all three participants have been completed.
Telecom companies say spectrum is an invisible infrastructure but a crucial one as it drives digital connectivity — the foundation of modern life.
More to follow
