Airtel acquires Aircel's 4G spectrum for $525m
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Airtel acquires Aircel's 4G spectrum for $525m

India’s Bharti Airtel is set to become a pan-Indian operator after agreeing to acquire Aircel’s 4G spectrum in eight circles for a fee of $525.9mn (Rs 3,500 crore), according to a stock exchange filing.

Airtel, which will now be able to offer 4G services in all 22 telecoms, will have added access to 20MHz spectrum in Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal, Assam, the Northeast, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

''With the above acquisition, Bharti Airtel will become pan-India 4G operator,'' Airtel said.

Airtel will have access to Aircel’s eight 4G spectrum circles until September 2030. The use of spectrum in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha will be subject to the revision of spectrum caps expected during the Department of Telecommunications’ upcoming auction.

The deal comes ahead of the expected 4G rollout of telecom services by Reliance Jio, which recently appointed a chief digital officer ahead of the launch.






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