The Philippines' PT&T has received clearance to participate in the selection process for the market's third major telecoms player after settling its outstanding liabilities.
The company has received certification from regulator NTC that it has no uncontested liabilities to the regulator as of October 1, the Manila Standardreported.
Having no uncontested outstanding liabilities to the NTC is a condition of participating in the planned new major player (NMP) selection process
PT&T was established in 1962 and was once considered a rival to PLDT, one of the two operators to make up the Philippines' current telecoms duopoly. But the company was forced to enter corporate rehabilitation in 2007 after struggling for the decade following the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis.
But PT&T has since been embarking on a revival plan, and has paid 20.57 million pesos in spectrum fees to the regulator since 2003. PT&T also paid off its uncontested 10.27 million peso supervision and regulation fees (SRF) this year.
So far at least nine companies, including China Telecom and Norway-based Telenor, have purchased bid documents for the beauty contest style selection process, but it remains unclear how many of these will be participating.
The government hopes to be able to provisionally name the third telco on November 7, but a legal challenge by NOW Telecom could delay the formal selection.