Vodafone Idea wants surrender rights for pre-2022 spectrum; Airtel seeks refund or adjustment of charges

Spectrum

India’s leading telecom operators, Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel, have urged the government and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to address gaps in the current spectrum surrender policy, seeking greater flexibility and financial parity in the treatment of surrendered airwaves.

In its submission to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on its latest consultation paper for upcoming spectrum auctions, Vodafone Idea has said that while the need for allowing spectrum surrender has been upheld, the option has not been extended to spectrum acquired through auctions held before 2022. The company argued that since even the pre-2022 auctioned spectrum was acquired at market-determined prices, operators should have the same right to surrender it as they do for spectrum acquired in the 2022 auction.

“Given that the spectrum taken from auctions even before 2022 were at market determined price, it is important that spectrum surrender right is also extended to the spectrum acquired through auctions before 2022 auction,” Vodafone Idea said, requesting TRAI to recommend the same to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).

Airtel, on the other hand, has focused on the financial treatment of surrendered spectrum, calling for a refund or adjustment of spectrum charges already paid. Under the current Spectrum Surrender Guidelines issued in June 2022, telcos are exempt from future instalments once they surrender spectrum, but any payments already made—whether full or partial—are not refunded. Airtel said this creates a “discriminatory” situation that discourages operators from making upfront payments and prevents efficient use of spectrum.

“This not only discourages TSPs from making such upfront or pre-payments, but also deters them from surrendering spectrum even if it is of no use—resulting in the spectrum lying idle,” Airtel said in its submission. The company added that this undermines public interest, as the surrendered spectrum could be re-auctioned for use by other operators, generating revenue for the government.

Airtel urged that in the interest of fairness and policy consistency, the guidelines be amended to allow refund of prepaid spectrum charges. If refund is not feasible, it said, the amount should be adjusted against the operator’s deferred spectrum payments or future auction dues.