The Bangladesh government has instructed the telecom regulator to allocate a majority portion of the remaining 700 MHz spectrum to state-owned operator Teletalk Bangladesh, despite the company having more than Tk 5,500 crore in unpaid spectrum fees and other liabilities.
According to official documents, the Posts and Telecommunications Division recently directed the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) to allocate 10 MHz to Teletalk from the 15 MHz spectrum that remained unsold in the 700 MHz band through an executive order.
Initially, 25 MHz of spectrum was earmarked for auction in this band. On January 21, Grameenphone became the first mobile operator in Bangladesh to acquire spectrum in the 700 MHz band, purchasing 10 MHz at the base price of Tk 237 crore per MHz. The company will pay Tk 2,370 crore for the allocation.
Grameenphone was the only bidder in the auction. Anticipating limited participation, BTRC had revised the auction rules beforehand by lowering the maximum spectrum limit per operator from 15 MHz to 10 MHz. As a result, 15 MHz remained unallocated after the auction.
The government has now decided to allocate 10 MHz of the remaining spectrum to Teletalk, leaving only 5 MHz unassigned.
The move has raised concerns because existing spectrum guidelines generally prevent operators with outstanding dues from receiving new spectrum allocations.
Teletalk currently owes Tk 5,506 crore in unpaid spectrum fees and other liabilities.
BTRC Chairman Md Emdad ul Bari confirmed receiving the government’s directive requesting the allocation. He said Teletalk had earlier requested spectrum from the band but the request was rejected because allocating spectrum without an auction would not be competitive.
“Since the allocation has already been completed to an operator after calling an auction and 15 MHz remains unsold, the government can allocate the remaining spectrum,” he said.
When asked about the operator’s outstanding dues, Bari acknowledged that spectrum guidelines typically prohibit allocation to operators with unpaid obligations. However, he added that “there is an arrangement for this,” noting that Teletalk had previously received spectrum under similar conditions.
Teletalk currently serves about 68 lakh subscribers out of Bangladesh’s roughly 18.6 crore mobile users, representing around 3.66 percent of the market.
The 700 MHz band, often referred to as “golden spectrum,” is highly valued for its technical advantages. As a low-frequency band, it can travel longer distances, penetrate buildings more effectively, and require fewer towers for coverage compared with higher-frequency spectrum.
These characteristics make it particularly useful for expanding rural connectivity, improving indoor coverage in urban areas, and supporting both 4G network expansion and future 5G deployments.
