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Tuesday, 8 February 2022

Orange Egypt lands new cellular bandwidth for USD 440 mn

Orange Egypt has snapped up 30 MHz of new bandwidth from the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), the regulator announced in a statement yesterday. The frequency band came with a price tag of USD 440 mn, with the proceeds earmarked to help develop mobile phone services across the country, it said.

2020, part II: The latest award comes as a continuation of the 2020 government tender that saw 80 MHz in new frequencies sold to mobile operators for almost USD 1.2 bn.

Orange was the only telco not to get its hands on new frequencies back in 2020. Vodafone Egypt bought two 20-MHz bands, while Etisalat Misr and Telecom Egypt got two 10-MHz bands each. Orange was reported to have bid in the original auction, only to lose out to Etisalat.

Background: Mobile network operators have repeatedly asked the NTRA to provide access to new bandwidth since 2017 when the regulator first launched 4G in the country.

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