THE NTRA COULD CHARGE bidders for the 4G licence entirely in USD, should the authority issue an international tender, Al Mal reported. The NTRA board will decide on the fate of the licence, which was rejected by local MNOs, on 12 October. Options on the table include tendering the license for bids from international operators with new conditions or selling some of the remaining 25 MHz spectrum bandwidth to Telecom Egypt (TE). Kuwait’s Zain formally renewed its interest in acquiring a 4G license in USD, while China Telecom and Saudi’s STC have also said they’re interested, but have not formally filed a request with the CIT Ministry. As we had previously reported, Vodafone Egypt, Orange Egypt, and Etisalat Misr have all refused the 4G license citing the spectrum on offer would neither allow for operating 4G services effectively nor for faster internet speeds, as well as difficulty arranging 50% of the cost in USD.

But an international tender is probably the worst option, unnamed telecom sector sources tell Al Borsa. A fifth operator entering the market means they would have to sign a framework agreement with the existing MNOs to piggyback off their infrastructure for 2G and 3G services, which would increase the load on the networks, impacting service levels negatively. Additionally, the CIT Ministry, according to the sources, should ensure TE gets a 10% market share before allowing another operator into the market. The best option, they say, is to restart talks on 4G spectrum with the existing operators.