Six Companies Express Interest in 3rd Mobile License in Bahrain
Bahrain's Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) says that it has received a total of seven responses to its request for expressions of interest in the award process of the licence for the third mobile network operator (MNO) in the Kingdom. Six companies expressed their interest to compete for the right to become a third MNO.
The responses received cover different aspects of the award process of the third mobile license, such as preferred spectrum band(s), amount of spectrum required, and any additional measures, such as infrastructure sharing, national roaming, any exclusivity period required and the preferred license award mechanism, which are considered to be essential for the entry of a third MNO.
The information gained from the responses will aid TRA in the development of the tender documents and supporting information memorandum. TRA also intends to appoint a consultancy company to assist in the design of the award process of the third mobile license.
TRA's General Director, Mr. Alan Horne, said: "Looking at the responses received we are greatly encouraged by the level of international interest that has been shown in the Bahraini telecommunications market. The responses are from a mixture of companies interested in investing in the future of Bahrain including both local companies with international partners, and international companies new to the telecoms sector of Bahrain.
Mr. Horne added: "The number of responses received does not necessarily reflect the full amount of interest in the third mobile license in Bahrain, as some companies may prefer to submit their bids without expressing any interest at this time".
The country's two current operators are Zain (formerly MTC Vodafone) and Batelco. Figures from the Mobile World show that the country ended 2007 with just over 1 million subscribers - which represents a population penetration level of 148% - if you ignore the large migrant and ex-pat population. Including them brings the population penetration level down to around the 98% mark.
Posted to the site on 12th May 2008
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