Etisalat is reported to have lost interest in bidding for the third mobile licence in Syria. The telco said the terms and conditions were not suitable for the operator "to achieve its objectives" in terms of technology and the value it could bring to the market.
A report from Middle East Economic Digest (MEED) stated that Etisalat was unhappy with the Syrian government’s demand that the winning bidder pay a 25 per cent revenue share.
Ahmed bin Ali, senior vice president for corporate communications, Etisalat Group, said: "We worked hard on this opportunity especially due to the close relations with our sister country Syria, but we hoped that the terms and conditions for the licence would have been more attractive."
The auction for the third mobile licence is set to begin in April with a minimum reserve price of US$122 million.
Other operators qualified to bid are Qatar Telecom, France Telecom, Saudi Telecom and Turkcell.
Syria’s mobile market is currently dominated by Syriatel and MTN Syria, which both operate under build, operate and transfer licences.
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