Spice asks for speedy spectrum allocation

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Spice Communications Limited today asked the Department of Telecom to issue the Letter of Intent for pending Universal Access Service License (UASL) applicants and also sought to speed up the issue of spectrum allocation.

In a letter to the DoT chairman, Umang Das, joint managing director of Spice Communications reminded the government of pending UASL applications from August 2006 for its GSM mobile service in 20 circles.

“Further to our letter of 20th December 2007 where in we had requested you to immediately issue LoI for the circles applied for in order to enable us to make payments of Entry Fees and provide Guarantees such that the LoIs are accordingly converted into Licenses pursuant to which applications for initial Spectrum associated with licenses can be lodged with WPC,” Das said in the letter.

He said that Spice Communications should have been issued the LoI for the circles, which it had applied for UASL in August 2006. “Based on the UASL guidelines that within 30 days of the submission of our application we should have been issued LoI, which has not been awarded to us till date,” he contended.

He said that keeping in mind the above policy guidelines, Spice Communications had organized funds in anticipation of LoI issuance within the prescribed time lines.

“It is an established practice of the DoT that date of application for UAS License for mobile services is the start of a complete chain of administrative processes, which include inter alia, Issuance of LoI, Receipt of Payments and Guarantees within the stipulated period and culminates into application for Spectrum. Delay in processing our LoIs beyond prescribed time lines cannot be a basis for equating us with any applicant who may have applied for GSM initial Spectrum after our date of application,” he said further.

“Please note that any manipulation of issuance of initial GSM Spectrum allocation priority to us through manipulation of any of the intermediate administrative processes would constitute an illegality and also cause irreparable damage and loss to our company,” Das said.

He said that Spice Communications is ready to make payments of entry fees as also execute FBGs and PBGs against the LoIs that are due. He has also asked the DoT to confirm its readiness to accept the payments in anticipation of LoIs and has said that the adjustments may be carried out immediately thereafter.

Spice Communications had received the Letter of Intent (LoI) during May 2007 from the Department of Telecom (DoT). The company, had on August 31, 2006, had applied for operating licenses to operate in 21 additional cellular circles in the country including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai.

Today’s letter comes in the wake of Spice Communications selling of its tower business and raising funds for expansion. The letter assumes added significance after the government decided to offer start-up spectrum for new licensees entering into the GSM services – namely Reliance Communications, Tata Teleservices and HFCL.

However, a final decision is likely to be taken by the government, after the Delhi high court delivers its final verdict. The GSM-led COAI had approached the Delhi High Court for stalling of start-up spectrum allocation and challenging the TDSAT order in this regard.

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