The Indonesian government plans to hold a limited tender for unused spectrum in the 2.1-GHz and 2.3-GHz bands by the middle of the year.
Communications and informatics minister Rudiantara has announced that the government expects to issue the terms of the tender process by the end of March, and to announce the winner by mid-year, the Jakarta Globereported.
Only existing operators will be entitled to participate in the limited tender, the minister said.
The 2.1-GHz band is used by operators including Telkomsel, Indosat Ooreedoo, XL Axiata and Hutchison 3 Indonesia for 3G services, while the 2.3-GHz band is used for 4G wireless broadband services in parts of the country.
Plans to reallocate the unused capacity in the 2.1-GHz band returned by Axis Telecom in 2014 following its merger into XL Axiata have been in the works since 2015, but the process has been delayed by technical and other difficulties.
According to the report, only half of the unused 30 MHz of capacity in the 2.3-GHz band will be allocated.
Indonesian operators, facing a spectrum crunch in major cities, have responded enthusiastically to the announcement, and are urging the government to ensure there are no further delays.