ISLAMABAD: The consultant for the 5G spectrum auction has presented its report to the government, but the Spectrum Advisory Committee (SAC) could not meet on Saturday due to the courts’ pen-down strike. However, the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecom is confident that it can meet the Feb 15 deadline set by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for the auction.

The key hurdle in the way of the auction process is litigation over the 2600MHz band. A decision by the Sindh High Court, expected on Saturday, was delayed due to the lawyers’ strike. A senior IT ministry official said the judgement is now expected sometime next week.

The consultant’s report had already been delayed for two main reasons: the pending court ruling and the ongoing merger of Telenor Pakistan with PTCL. With approval from the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP), only three operators are in the mobile telecom market.

The US-based consultancy firm National Economic Research Associates Inc. (NERA) submitted its final report on the auction framework to the SAC during a meeting on Friday. It was chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and attended by the Pakistan Teleco­mmunications Authority (PTA) chairman, the executive director of the Frequency Allocation Board, and representatives from the GHQ and ISI.

Court strike delays Spectrum Advisory Committee’s meeting

Acknowledging delays in the auction process, NERA provided multiple modules for rolling out 5G services. Its report outlines key policy recommendations, including auction design, methodology, base price, duration and other terms and conditions. It offers two main options: raising the base price to generate higher upfront revenue, or keeping a lower base price to give telecom operators financial space to invest quickly in infrastructure and improve services.

Official sources said the report highlighted the high taxation burden on the sector, noting that telecom taxes stand at 37 per cent and that Rs37 billion is generated annually for every Rs100bn increase in industry revenue. The industry’s revenue stood at Rs800bn in the last fiscal year and is expected to grow once more spectrum becomes available. “The average consumption in Pakistan is 6GB per user per month, but demand is already projected to reach 9GB. Pakistan is a spectrum-starved country,” a PTA official said.

The NERA report notes that Pakistan is offering 606MHz of new spectrum across six major bands: 700MHz, 1800MHz, 2100MHz, 2300MHz, 2600MHz and 3500MHz.The 2600MHz band is considered the most suitable for 5G, and about 190MHz is likely to be offered from this band.

Some investors have placed the 2600MHz band under litigation, and the government expects the court decision soon.

“Soon after the court decision, and if the spectrum is cleared from litigation, the SAC will hold internal discussions and forward the final plan to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC). From there it will go to the federal cabinet,” an IT ministry official said. After cabinet approval, the IT ministry will issue the policy directive for the spectrum auction.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2025