Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel will face stiff competition from Adani Group in the upcoming 5G spectrum auction. Both telcos are to launch 5G for both B2B and B2C applications. For this, the telcos would bid heavily on the midband spectrum in the 3.3-3.67 GHz band. Before the Adani Group’s entry, no bidding war was expected, because Vodafone idea didn’t have the money to do it at first. But now Adani Group, with its rich cash resources and access to debt, will compete against the private telcos in the 5G spectrum auction.
According to an ET report, Reliance Jio and Airtel are likely to spend close to Rs 60,000 crore and Rs 50,000 crore in the upcoming 5G spectrum auction. Adani Data Networks, a wholly owned subsidiary of Adani Group, is expected to spend up to Rs 15,000 crore while Vodafone Idea (Vi) could spend Rs 6,000 crore.
There may be an intense fight between Jio, airtel and Adani to get the midband spectrum. With 5G, Adani Group also wants to provide services in the B2B domain.
The telcos were already not happy with the minimum price of the ether. This uphill battle of the Adani Group would make this even worse. This could make it too expensive for telecom operators to roll out 5G networks in India.
Indian government to take advantage of this
But all this would be a good thing for the Indian government, which would settle all revenues from the spectrum auction. The report mentions that Jio, Airtel, Adani and Vi deposited Rs 6500 – Rs 7500 crore, Rs 6000 – Rs 7000 crore, Rs 2000 – Rs 2500 crore and Rs 600 – Rs 700 crore as serious cash deposits (EMD).
Companies participating in the spectrum auction must submit EMD as part of the application process. The exact amount has not yet been announced.
