The Department of Telecom has released the Notice inviting applications (NIA) for the Spectrum Auction 2021 which is scheduled to begin in March this year. Here we will give you a concise picture of the timeline of events beginning from the release of the NIA up to the commencement of the Auction process. MSTC Ltd is the Auctioneer for this spectrum sale.
Auction 2021 Timeline:
| Event | Date |
|---|---|
| Issue of Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) | 06/01/2021 |
| Pre-bid Conference | 12/01/2021 |
| Last date for seeking clarifications on NIA | 15/01/2021 |
| Clarifications to NIA | 28/01/2021 |
| Last date for submission of Applications | 09/02/2021 |
| Publication of Ownership details of Applicants | 12/02/2021 |
| Bidder Ownership Compliance Certificate | 16/02/2021 |
| Pre-qualification of Bidders | 18/02/2021 |
| Last date of withdrawal of applications | 20/02/2021 |
| Final List of bidders | 22/02/2021 |
| Mock Auction | 24/02/2021 25/02/2021 |
| Start of the Auction | 01/03/2021 |
Spectrum Auction 2021 will see the government put up for sale a total of 2251.25 MHz of spectrum across 7 frequency bands namely 700 MHz, 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz and 2500 MHz at a reserve price of 3,92,332.70 crores. The telecom operators can choose to either pay the entire amount upfront or pay 25% to 50% upfront and pay the remaining amount in 16 equated yearly instalments starting from the third year after a two year moratorium.
DoT will raise a demand note for the payable amount to the winners of spectrum soon after the provisional results are declared. The successful bidders will have 10 calendar days to pay the amount to DoT which will then within 30 days of receiving the payment allot the spectrum which is immediately available to the winners. The spectrum which is currently held with incumbent operators will be made available on the day after its expiry and the effective validity of spectrum will be 20 years from that date.
