Business
5G: NCC, telcomm firms disagree on 3.5GHz spectrum price, duration
The Nigerian Communications Commission has released a draft information memorandum for 3.5GHz spectrum auction to facilitate the 5G roll-out in 2022 across the country.
The NCC had fixed December 13, 2021 for the 3.5GHz spectrum auction and had pegged the reserve price at $197.4 million (N75 billion).
But telecoms operators, including GSM Association (GSMA), have disagreed with the reserve price and called for a downward review to enable more operators participate in the 3.5GHz auction process.
The NCC at a stakeholders’ consultative forum, held in Lagos on Thursday, presented the positions of the operators and the GSMA, which they had earlier submitted to the commission.
The stakeholders’ consultative forum, which was organised by the NCC further discussed the reserve price, among other issues such as longevity of the spectrum licence, the auction process, the requirements and rollout obligations.
While the NCC was considering a 10-year period for the duration of the spectrum, the operators want the NCC to extend it to 20 years, to enable winners of the spectrum to have enough roll-out time to utilise the spectrum in offering telecoms services to subscribers.
Reacting to the N75 billion reserve price, telecoms operators such as MTN, Airtel, Huawei and Intelsat called on the NCC to consider the current exchange rate in pegging the reserve price.
They argued that if the reserve price remained high, it would discourage operators from participating in the auction process.
The Director, Spectrum Administration at NCC, Oluwatoyin Asaju, who presented the draft IM for the 3.5GHz spectrum auction at the stakeholders’ consultative forum said: “The IM provides guidance and process that the commission has decided to adopt for the licensing of the 3.5 GHz band, including details of the spectrum to be made available, the pre-qualification process and the auction process.”
According to him, the 3.5GHz spectrum would come in five lots of 100 MHz each, to be cleared at different periods depending on the level of encumbrances on the slots.
He, however, said for the purpose of the auction, only two lots of 100 MHz each would be offered in the first phase of the auction, while the remaining three lots would be auctioned some other time.
For the auction process, Asaju explained that it would be Ascending Clock Auction (ACA), while the auction would be software based.
He said provisions had been made for manual auction should the auction software fail during the auction process, adding that there would be a mock auction that would precede the main auction on December 13.
“A reserve price of approximately N75 billion, equivalent to $197,400,000.00, will to be used. An Initial Bid Deposit (IBD) equal to 10 per cent of the reserve price is adopted in line with the previous auction.
“New entrants are allowed to participate in the auction in addition to existing licensees and only licensees with 100 per cent regulatory compliance will be allowed to participate in the auction.
“The auction comes with a 10-year spectrum licence and a minimum requirement of a UASL Operational Licence. New entrants or licensees without a UASL will be required to additionally obtain a UASL Operational Licence,” Asaju said.
Business
RT Briscoe appoints Femi Eguaikhide as Deputy Managing Director
RT Briscoe appoints Femi Eguaikhide as Deputy Managing Director
The Board of RT Briscoe Plc has appointed Dr Olorunfemi Abidemi Eguaikhide, the Executive Director responsible for business operations to a new position of Deputy Managing Director.
The appointment, according to the management of the organisation, will take effect from January 1st, 2025.
Born on March 28, 1968, Eguakhide holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration and an MBA in Marketing Management from the Enugu State University of Science and Technology.
He is an Alumnus of the prestigious Lagos Business School of the Pan Atlantic University having attended the Advanced Management Programme (AMP) in 2016.
He is a full member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (MCIPM); associate member of the Nigerian Institute for Training and Development (AITD); Fellow of the Institute of Credit Administration (FICA), Certified Digital Marketing Professional (CDMP) and Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Administration of Nigeria.
The core experience of the new Deputy Managing Director is in the areas of operations management, sales and marketing management, human resources and business leadership.
Dr. Eguaikhide previously worked with Genesis Group variously as deputy general manager in charge of Human Resources and IT; general manager HR & IT; general manager, operations and chief operations officer at the Bridge Healthcare Company in 2010.
He joined RT Briscoe as group head, human capital development in 2012 and was appointed to manage the Briscoe-Ford Business unit in 2014 as the general manager.
He was subsequently appointed as head of the Briscoe-Motors Business unit in 2017 and later as the group chief operating officer in September 2018.
He obtained his doctorate degree in December 2021 and was appointed a director of RT Briscoe with effect from September 1, 2019.
Reacting to his latest promotion, Mike Ochonma, Chairman of Nigeria Auto Journalists Association (NAJA), described the appointment as a square peg in a square hole.
He said it was as a well deserved elevation, coming at a time when businesses are going through very difficult times, adding that he has no doubt that Eguaikhide would bring his wealth of experience to bear on the role in the company.
Business
Food price, transport fare hike push Nigeria’s inflation to 33.88%
Food price, transport fare hike push Nigeria’s inflation to 33.88%
Rising cost of living based on the increase in food prices and transport fares among others has reflected in the latest inflation figures in Nigeria, put at 33.88 per cent.
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate rose to 33.88 per cent in October 2024, up from 32.7 per cent in September 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released on Friday.
Newstrends.ng observes that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has raised interest rates five times this year in an effort to rein in inflation.
The NBS in its latest report attributed the rise in inflation to increased transportation costs and higher food prices.
On a year-on-year basis, the rate was 6.55 percentage points higher than the 27.33 per cent recorded in October 2023, highlighting a substantial increase in inflation over the past year.
On a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in October 2024 stood at 2.64 per cent, representing a 0.12 per cent increase from the 2.52 per cent recorded in September 2024
This indicates that the rate of increase in the average price level in October 2024 was higher than the rate of increase observed in September 2024.
Aviation
Disaster averted as bird strike hits Abuja-Lagos Air Peace flight
Disaster averted as bird strike hits Abuja-Lagos Air Peace flight
An Abuja-Lagos flight was on Thursday aborted following a bird strike on the airplane belonging to Air Peace, forcing the authorities to ground the aircraft.
The bird strike experienced in the early hours reportedly prompted a ramp return to ensure the safety of passengers onboard.
All the passengers quickly disembarked and were calmed down before they were moved into another plane for the one-hour journey.
A bird strike is a collision between a bird and an aircraft, or other airborne animal, while the aircraft is in flight, taking off, or landing. And it can be a significant threat to aircraft safety.
Air Peace in a statement by its Head of Corporate Communications, Ejike Ndiulo, said the bird strike occurred at 6:30am, and all passengers disembarked normally.
The statement read, “We wish to inform our esteemed passengers that our Abuja- Lagos 06:30 flight experienced a bird strike before take-off, prompting a ramp return as a safety measure. All passengers disembarked normally.
“We have deployed a replacement aircraft for the affected flight in order to minimize disruptions, thus ensuring that passengers continue their journeys promptly.
“We appeal for the understanding of our valued passengers impacted by this development, as well as those on other flights that may experience delays.
“At Air Peace, we are committed to providing safe, comfortable, and reliable air travel for all our passengers.”
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