The 5G spectrum auction evoked bids worth Rs 232 crore on the fourth day after seven rounds on Friday and would continue on Saturday.
Telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the auction has so far witnessed 23 rounds of bidding which fetched bids worth Rs 1,49,855 crore.
The total proceeds from the third day of 5G spectrum auctions inched closer to the Rs 1.5 trillion mark, the minister said. Till Thursday, the auction had attracted bids worth Rs 149,623 crore.
Analysts said the datasheet indicates that telcos were bidding at the base price in the majority of circles since a good quantity of airwaves is available this time.
Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio, Sunil Bharti Mittal’s Bharti Airtel, Vodafone-Idea and Gautam Adani are vying to buy the 5G airwaves. According to analysts, Reliance Jio may be the most aggressive of those in the race.
The four players — Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and Adani Data Networks — have in all deposited Rs 21,800 crore. Reliance Jio submitting earnest money of Rs 14,000 crore and the new entrant Adani has put in a notional Rs 100 crore. Bharti Airtel has forked over the second highest amount as earnest money deposit (EMD) at Rs 5,500 crore, a little under 40 per cent of the amount paid by its biggest competitor, Jio. Cashstrapped Vodafone Idea has furnished an EMD of Rs 2,200 crore, despite a net worth of negative Rs 80,918 crore.
Based on the earnest money, the government could mop up a maximum of Rs 1.95 lakh crore through the spectrum auctions.
