The National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel), Paraguay's telecommunications regulator, received proposals on Friday from two companies interested in the second tender for 5G mobile service licenses in the country. The competing companies are Telefónica Celular del Paraguay SAE (Tigo) and Núcleo S.A. (Personal).
Conatel's alternate director, Víctor Martínez, reported that the regulatory body will analyze the documentation next week to determine which companies are pre-qualified. The award mechanism, which could be through an auction or a simplified procedure, will depend on the frequency bands requested by each company.
The tender offers two 100 MHz blocks: one in the 2,300 MHz band, with a base price of US$1.6 million, and another in the 3,700 MHz band, valued at US$1 million. If both companies bid for the same block, a public auction will be held. Otherwise, the award will follow the simplified path.
This process takes place while the first 5G license, granted to Nubicom Paraguay S.A., remains under special oversight by the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic, with questions remaining about the effective start of its commercial services.