Defence Forces Made 30Mhz of 700Mhz Band Accessible To Pakistani Government

According to the latest reports, the Defense Forces have given the Pakistani government access to 30 MHz (2 x 15 MHz) of the 700 MHz band. As a result, the total amount of spectrum available for the NGMS / 5G spectrum auction in the country becomes about 300 MHz. Frequency Allocation Board (FAB) has been given the responsibility of formally supporting and advocating for the consideration of the availability of the most extensive feasible spectrum, which includes 2×15 MHz in the 700 MHz band.

Sources claim that the government has enough spectrum to offer in any forthcoming spectrum auction for NGMS in Pakistan. On the other hand, cellular mobile operators (CMOs) are quite cautious due to Pakistan’s economic difficulties and the unpredictability of the 5G rollout.

Pakistani Government Possesses Spectrum In All ITU Bands

An official claims that the government possesses spectrum in all ITU bands designated for the NGMS auction. It includes bands above 700, 2100, 2300, 2600, and 3300 MHZ that are suitable for 5G. According to the latest reports, two MHz of the 2100 band have already been allocated by the government to the CMOs. Moreover, an additional two MHz of the 2100 band have been put up for auction as well. Only 5 MHz has been assigned out of the available 95 MHz in the 2300 band. 140 MHz is reportedly the subject of a lawsuit. Moreover, the government also possesses 54 MHz and intends to release it early.

The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication has drafted a “Framework for Frequency Spectrum re-farming” to manage the spectrum dynamically and make it available for rising uses including digital television, broadband wireless access, 4G, and 5G. According to Section 8.5.1 of the Telecom Policy 2015, when spectrum is underutilized and not being used to its full potential, or where its use is not in line with recent international allotments, it will be re-farmed.

All the existing users and license holders need to relinquish their spectrum allocations in a given band to allow the band to be assigned to new users. “Spectrum reframing”: A set of administrative, financial, and technological strategies is used to pull out equipment from current frequency assignments. It can be done either totally or partially, from a specific frequency range.