Three mobile licences awarded

According to Finance Minister Bayan Jabor and quoted by Reuters, the Iraqi government has sold three mobile phone licences for USD3.75 billion to MTC, AsiaCell and Korek Telecom, three operators that already run mobile networks in the country. The two remaining participants in the auction, Turkcell and Orascom, dropped out of the race, with the latter saying that a licence cost of USD1.25 billion and an 18% revenue sharing agreement with the government was too high a price to pay. It is thought that Orascom will seek to sell its Iraqi-based subsidiary: the company had operated in the country via Iraqna under a short-term licence since 2003.