Addl 2G fee won't hit operators' profit: Trai

Amid hue and cry by mobile operators about paying heavily for excess spectrum that would impact their profitability, telecom regulator Trai today said that outgo would be small and would not impact their operating profits.

"There is going to be no impact ... The numbers are not going to be high. In fact, its going to be a small amount. I don't think it is going to matter in terms of their own operating profits or tariffs," Trai Chairman J S Sarma told reporters here today.

For the excess payout for spectrum, the outgo for all operators put together would be only about Rs 14,000 crore, of which Rs 5,700 crore would come from BSNL and MTNL.

For radiowaves beyond the contracted 6.2 Mhz in their possession, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) on Tuesday recommended that operators pay a one-time fee based on prices of 3G spectrum, auction for which is currently on.

Bharti, Vodafone Essar, MTNL and BSNL hold over 6.2 Mhz spectrum in many of the circles. Bharti and Vodafone hold more than 10 MHz in many circles, including Mumbai and New Delhi.

The telecom stocks were battered on stock markets following the Trai proposals in anticipation of their balance sheets being hit by huge payout by operators.

As per Trai proposals, for spectrum between 6.2 Mhz and 8 Mhz, operators have to pay one-time fee discovered by 3G auction. For spectrum 8 Mhz to 10 Mhz, the fee 1.3 times of 3G price.

All Trai proposals need to be approved by the Department of Telecom (DoT) to be made a law.

Asked whether he is open to rework on the recommendations, Sarma said, "They (operators) are welcome to met me. Let me first see what they have to say ... As far as recommendations are concerned, they have already been sent to the DoT."

On pricing of 2G spectrum, he said, "We are working on it. We have already indicated to the government that we will send the final report in few weeks."