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Norwegian operator Telenor on Monday said that it will participate in the auction for 2G spectrum if rules are conducive.
Telenor, with 67 per cent stake in Uninor, said that it has already invested Rs 14,000 crore and will do everything possible to protect the investments. The company did not rule out a legal option to fight its case.
“In principle, we are okay to bid in an auction but issues like base price, eligibility are important. Since the objective of the Government in 2008 was to increase competition in the market, the auction should be limited to only new players,” said Mr Sigve Brekke, head of the Norwegian company's Asian operations.
He added that if the auction rules are not conducive then the company also had the option to exit.
May file review petition
Telenor has already written off 4.2 billion Kroner after the Supreme Court directed the Government to cancel licences issued on or after January 2008. Mr Brekke said that he has told his legal team to look at all options including filing a review petition in the court and sue the Department of Telecom for damages.
'We're not dead yet'
On the operations side, he said that it was business as usual and the company had added nearly 3 lakh new subscribers since the court verdict. “We don’t want to lose the momentum in the business so there’s no slowing down. But it is unethical of some of the rival players to take advantage of the situation and issue advertisements asking our customers to shift. We are not dead yet,” Mr Brekke said. He said that Uninor will also soon release advertisements to assure customers that Uninor continues to be operational.
At the political level, Norwegian authorities have requested Indian Government to protect investments made by Telenor. A senior Norwegian Minister is expected to arrive in the country this week to meet top Government functionaries.
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