Spectrum sale may fetch only Rs 10,000 crore initial payment

MUMBAI: The government may generate upfront payments of only around Rs 10,000 crore from spectrum auctions in the next fiscal year starting April 1, given the financial challenges faced by two major telcos Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel, telecom department officials have estimated.

This implies that the next spectrum sale could fetch it only around Rs 35,000-40,000 crore overall as against the Rs 5.86 lakh crore worth of airwaves that the government wants to put on sale at base price, experts said.

Telcos pay upfront 25% for the sub-1 GHz band and 50% for higher bands they win in auctions. The balance is paid over 16 years in equal instalments.