DoT to select 2G auctioneer in July

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) yesterday set up a committee to select the agency to conduct the e-auction of 2G spectrum.

It has appointed R J S Kushvaha, joint wireless advisor, as chairman of the committee to evaluate bids. U K Srivastava and Saurabh Tiwari have been appointed members and Nitin Jain is member-convenor.

The bids will be opened on July 5 and the committee would examine the eligibility of prospective bidders. It will then identify those who fulfill the criteria laid down in the Request For Proposal (RFP). It will have to make a recommendation for selection on July 7. A presentation by the eligible bidders will be made on the same day. The bid opening has already been delayed; it was supposed to be opened in mid-May.

As many as 11 investment bankers are known to be in the race to get the contract to be the coveted 2G auctioneer. Some of the expected bidders are likely to be Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, Rothschild India and DotEcon. The 3G e-auction in 2010 was conducted by investment bank Rothschild.

In the RFP, the DoT said auctioneers should optimise the revenue received in the spectrum sale.

The auctioneer will also have to shoulder the responsibility to create appropriate market interest, both domestically and internationally.

DoT also said it would be conducting the auctions within three months of signing the contract with the auctioneer in line with the RFP. The bid document says the chosen auctioneer can also bid for additional work, as DoT might ask for more auctions, with additional payment, if it later identifies more blocks of spectrum in a service area.