Spectrum auction: Telcos place Rs 11,000-crore bids

New Delhi, June 25

The Spectrum e-auction started at 10 am today and has three bidders — Bharti Airtel Limited, Vodafone Idea Ltd and Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd.

The total quantum of spectrum being auctioned is 10,522.35 MHz in various bands valuing Rs 96,238.45 crore at reserve prices, the Ministry of Communication said. Telecom operators placed bids worth about Rs 11,000 crore on the first day of the spectrum auction that saw five rounds of bidding, according to sources.

A government spokesperson said on Tuesday that the auction would augment existing telecom services and maintain continuity of services. “This is in line with the government’s commitment to facilitate affordable, state-of-art high quality telecom services to all citizens,” the ministry said.