Telenor moves Supreme Court seeking early completion of 2G spectrum auction
22 Mar 2012
Norway's Telenor ASA has filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking completion of the 2G spectrum auction process by 2 June, against the government's timeline of at least 400 days for the allocation.
Uninor, the joint venture company between Telenor and India's real estate major Unitech, said it would be difficult for the company to survive in an uncertain atmosphere for 400 days.
On 2 February, the Supreme Court had ordered cancellation of all the 122 licences and directed the Department of Telecommunicaitons (DoT) to invite fresh bids for the 2G spectrum. (See: SC cancels all 2G licences, orders fresh spectrum auction)
Telenor is seeking completion of the auction within four months from the date of cancellation of the licences.
The worry for Telenor and many others like it is that once their licences lapse, they would not be able to offer services to their subscribers.
''We have moved the Supreme Court seeking early spectrum auction as any delay will hurt our interests. These auctions are and must remain about complying with the Supreme Court order that simply asked for the 2008 process to be remedied and fresh licences and spectrum be granted through auction in four months,'' Uninor Managing Director and Head of Telenor Asia operations Sigve Brekke said.