Romania’s Communication Authority ANCOM has announced that today's (September 11 ) auction organized for operators interested in obtaining 4G mobile telephony license closed before the licenses were sold. The authority also announced that the bidding will continue until the currently available spectra are sold.

The five telecom operators that took part in the auction had three rounds in order to obtain the license, offering higher prices than their rivals, but they stopped shortly after the beginning of the bid. As a result, the authority was forced to close the main stage of the auction. At the moment, the request does not exceed the offer, according to ANCOM.

The authority has also announced that there are frequency blocks that remain unsold after the three rounds held today, but supplementary bidding sessions will be organized in order to sell them. The first round of the auction will take place on the 14th of September. Previous bidders are also allowed to participate, even if they have already obtained frequency blocks. In this case, the authority will apply several restrictions concerning the rights for the spectra use. Remaining frequencies can also be bought in packages.

Romania’s Communication Authority ANCOM opened bidding for mobile phone spectra on July 2nd , while the final auction started today. ANCOM is awarding long term licenses valid until April 2029, as well as short term licenses which are available for one year and three months. The cost for participating in the auction was set at around EUR 1000.

The reserve price for each block in the four bands has been set by Government decision. The minimum price for each block in the 800 MHz assigned for 15 years will be EUR 35 million, for the 900 MHz band will be EUR 40 million, and respectively EUR 10 million per block in the 1800 MHz band and EUR 4 million per paired block and EUR 3 million per unpaired block in the 2600 MHz band. For those blocks to be assigned for periods of 15 months, the values have been set at EUR 1.7 million in the 900 MHz band and EUR 0.8 million in the 1800 MHz band.

The bid is expected to bring a total of EUR 700 million, EUR 200 million of which will have to be paid by the end of November this year by the winners of the auction. The remainder will be paid by mid 2013.

Romania will re-direct all the money it will cash in this year from selling it telecom licenses to agriculture and to helping our farmers whose crops were affected by drought.

Following the tender this year, the new licenses for the bands currently owned by Orange Romania and Vodafone Romania will come into force at the beginning of 2013. For the bands currently owned by Cosmote, the new license will become valid in April 2014.

Vodafone and Orange paid USD 75 million each for their license back in 1996. Cosmote bought the rights to use the 1,710-1,785 MHz/1,805-1,880 MHz frequencies in 1998, valid for 15 years, for some USD 53 million.

Iulia Marin