*Denies fixing auction date after MTN submitted bid
From Cyriacus Nnaji, Lagos
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has approved MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, Airtel Networks Ltd and Mafab Communications Ltd., to bid for its 3.5 gigahertz (Ghz) spectrum licence at a forthcoming auction.
Director, Public Affairs of NCC, Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, revealed this in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.
He said the license was for the deployment of Fifth Generation (5G) networks in the country.
He noted that the qualified bidders met the criteria for participation in the licensing process of 3.5Ghz spectrum, including payment of the stipulated Intention to Bid Deposit (IBD) as outlined in the Information Memorandum (IM).
Adinde said that the mock auction was scheduled for Dec. 10, while the main auction will hold on Dec. 13, both in Abuja.
He said: “The stage is now set for the three companies to participate in the main auction.
“They will also participate in the mandatory mock auction process, which will come as a precursor to the main auction.
“The commission has also reaffirmed the dates for the conduct of both the mock auction and the main auction.”
Meanwhile, NCC has refuted a newspaper report that claimed it compromised standards in the timing of the of auction.
Titled ‘How NCC moved 5G deadline after only MTN submitted bid’, the publication alleged that “the Commission was forced to move the November 24 deadline for the submission of the bid and payment of the ten percent fee of $20 million after it emerged that only MTN Nigeria had complied with the requirement.”
According to Adinde, “it is pertinent to state that the Nigerian Communications Commission maintains an unimpeachable record and reputation based on precedents of open and transparent spectrum auctions over the years, which had earned it both local and international recognition.
“For proper guidance of our stakeholders and the general public, it should be recalled that as part of the regulatory processes leading to the auction of the 3.5GHz spectrum, the Commission had carried out the following activities:
▪ October 7, 2021, the Commission exposed the Draft Information Memorandum (IM) on the auction of the 5G spectrum on its website (www.ncc.gov.ng) and issued a public notice in major media channels, including print, electronic and broadcast media. Comments on the draft IM were received by the Commission up until October 28, 2021.
▪ On November 3, 2021, the Commission held a stakeholders’ engagement forum in Lagos at which comments received from a broad segment of stakeholders, including the major operators were exhaustively discussed and considered.
▪ On November 10, 2021, the Commission published the Final IM, and Stakeholders’ comments thereon on its website and national dailies, and set the deadline for the submission of bids on Wednesday, November 24, 2021.
▪ On November 23, 2021, just a day before the deadline for the submission of bids, Air Traffic Controllers went on strike, disrupting flights operations in Lagos.
▪ As a responsive regulator, and following concerns expressed by industry stakeholders and potential bidders for the 5G Spectrum, including MTN, about the possibility of meeting the deadline in light of the flight disruptions, the Commission’s Board approved, an extension of the deadline from Wednesday, November 24, 2021 to Monday, November 29, 2021.
▪ Indeed, on November 23, 2021, MTN had communicated to the Commission via email, asserting its concerns about the air traffic controllers’ strike and how it is likely to impede timely submission of their bid.
▪ On December 1, 2021, the Commission announced that at the close of the bid submission date of November 29, 2021, three companies, namely MTN Nigeria, Mafab Communications Ltd and Airtel Networks Ltd had successfully submitted their bids in line with the requirements of the IM.
▪ The public must also be aware that all three bidders are existing licensees of the Commission under different license categories.
“The Commission would like to state that the Business Day story is replete with misinformation, which is capable of misleading industry stakeholders, the general public and undermining the integrity of the ongoing process for the auction of the 5G spectrum.
“For instance, the publication alleged that Mafab Communications is a relatively unknown operator in the industry, suggesting that it was not eligible to bid for the spectrum.
“The IM has clearly stipulated that new entrants into the industry can participate in the bid and if they are successful, the Commission will issue the entity an operating license in line with the extant provisions of the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) 2003 and its licensing regulations.
“The Commission is consistently guided by its well-established principles of fairness, firmness and forthrightness and wishes to assure Nigerians that it is determined to ensure the successful implementation of the 5G Auction spectrum, which is set to take place on December 13, 2021.”
NCAA okays Anambra airport for commercial flights
Anambra State has finally been given the green light the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to open the Anambra International Cargo And Passenger Airport for commercial operations with effect from 2nd December, 2021.
Minister
In a letter dated 1st December, 2021, addressed to Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State, the aviation authority said that it had received security clearance from relevant security agencies for the opening.
It said that an earlier negative security challenge was the reason the authority declined approval for the opening of the airport on the 30th of October 2021, when the state government had scheduled the commissioning.
In the interim, Category B aircraft are permitted to land and take off from the airport from sunrise to sunset.
Speaking on the development, Anambra State Commissioner for Works, Engineer Marcel Ifejiofor praised the efforts of Governor Obiano who never relented, even while on vacation to ensure that the Anambra airport becomes operational ahead of the Christmas 2021 mass return of Ndi Anambra living in the diaspora, and other visitors.
With this NCAA clearance, airlines already approved by the relevant authorities to operate at the Anambra airport, such as Airpeace, Ibom Air, United Nigeria and others are expected to start scheduling flights into and out of the airport immediately.
WACT hits one million man-hour without LTI safety record
From Anthony Nwachukwu, Lagos
APM Terminals’ West Africa Container Terminal (WACT), Onne, has announced a million man-hour record without Lost Time Injury (LTI) in its ongoing phase two terminal upgrade and expansion.
An LTI means no employee or contractor sustained an injury that resulted in the loss of productive work time.
Senior Project Manager of WACT, Rutger ten-Thij, said at the Onne Port, Rivers State, during an event to mark the safety milestone: “We have our families at home and so everyone working on the construction site needs to go home safely at the end of the day.
“One million hours is only a number. To implement the project safely at all levels is our main goal. We need to achieve the whole project without an LTI.
“It is not only a goal for the project team but also for the workers on-site, their supervisors, the management team from Vita Constructions and the entire construction team.
“A high-rise building is coming up. Other safety issues will emerge. It will be challenging but I am confident that together with the contractors, we will achieve that as well.”
Likewise, the Chief Operating Officer of WACT, Capt. Prashant Baijal, said the one million man-hour without Lost Time Injury (LTI) was made possible by the “full collaboration between the project team and the contractor.
“At WACT, safety is our license to operate, and Vita Construction understands that very well. Thank you to all the teams working night and day, the bar has been raised, let’s take it higher by ending the project without an LTI.”
The recently launched $110 million phase two upgrade covers the acquisition of three additional Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHCs) to bring the terminal’s MHCs to five, and the acquisition of 20 Rubber Tyre Gantry Cranes (RTGs).
Others include acquisition of three Reach Stackers,13 terminal trucks and trailers, an empty container handler, deployment of reefer racks with 600-plug capacity, the paving and expansion of the current yard by 13 hectares, as well as new workshop and new terminal gate complex.
WACT is the first greenfield terminal built in Nigeria in 2003 at the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone in Rivers State under the Federal Government’s public-private partnership.
It caters to the greater Port Harcourt area and Eastern Nigeria, including the oil and gas industry. Since inception, WACT has successfully connected the South-South, South-East, North and Western Nigeria to the global trading community.
