The companies include MTN Ghana, Surfline Communications, Goldkey Telecom and Migson Communications and all are now awaiting assessment by the NCA.
The NCA allegedly has 2x30MHz of 800MHz spectrum available, but it will initially only sell off two 15-year licences of 2x10MHz each at a minimum reserve price of $67.5 million.
The remaining frequencies are expected to be released “in due course”, the NCA said in a statement.
Rules state that all applying entities must be registered and certified to operate in Ghana, while those applying from outside of the country – joint ventures or consortiums – must have a minimum of 35% Ghanaian ownership.
Those that fail to meet the criteria will be requested to commit to meeting that threshold within 13 months of the licence date, or face a relevant reduction in their licence duration.
Statistics state that MTN Ghana leads the country’s mobile market, with Vodafone some way behind in second place and Tigo and Airtel ranking third and fourth respectively.
