An international auction for four licenses to run digital mobile phone networks in Nigeria will take place on January 17, officials confirmed Monday. The date of the auction, originally set for April and then put back to December, was reported by the newspaper National Interest on Sunday.
Officials of the Nigerian Communications Commission, which oversees the telecoms sector in Nigeria, on Monday confirmed the new date to AFP and said details of the auction were available on its website.
Bidders will have to pay a reserve price of $100 million for the licenses, with bidding starting from the reserve, and will be required to pay a $20 million deposit if they win one of the licenses. Several foreign companies have expressed interest in the licenses. — (AFP, Lagos)
© Agence France Presse 2000
