Ukraine 3G mobile licenses to be sought by three contender

The three biggest mobile telecom operators of Ukraine, MTS-Ukraine, Kyivstar and Astelit, filed their bids to acquire three, 15-year 3G licenses that are being auctioned by the Ukrainian government, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported on Feb. 17. The starting price of each license was announced at UAH 2.700 bln. MTS-Ukraine offered the highest price for each of the three licenses, bidding UAH 2.705-2.715, depending on the license. Kyivstar was ready to pay UAH 2.700-2.705 bln for a license, while Ateslit bid UAH 2.702 bln. Tenders for the licenses will take place on Feb. 23.

Besides tender payments for the licenses, winners will have to pay each UAH 0.53 bln, within couple of years, for conversion of the offered frequency bands, as they are currently used for military purposes in Ukraine.

Alexander Paraschiy: The fact that all the major mobile operators have agreed to purchase the mobile licenses is positive for the state budget, which should receive at least UAH 8.6 bln in additional one-off revenue this year. The core concern before the tender was a threat that leading mobile operators MTS and Kyivstar, both of which have large stake of Russian shareholders, will avoid the tenders due to risk of sanctions that the Ukrainian government might impose against them.