Orange Egypt and Etisalat Misr are competing for another 20 MHz of bandwidth on offer from the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), Masrawy reports, citing an unnamed NTRA official. The authority called an auction on Thursday for the bandwidth that includes two 10 MHz bands for USD 150 mn each. Orange and Etisalat had sat out an auction last month, which saw Vodafone Egypt and Telecom Egypt’s WE bid for 60 MHz of bandwidth, offered as one 40-MHz bundle for USD 600 mn and another 20-MHz for USD 300 mn. The results of the first sale have not yet been announced.

Background: Mobile network operators in Egypt have repeatedly asked the NTRA to provide access to more spectrum since 2017 when the regulator first launched 4G in the country. State-owned WE received 15 MHz, Orange and Etisalat receiving 10 MHz, and Vodafone getting 5 MHz.