Indicating that it will participate in the forthcoming spectrum auction, Uninor has asked telecom

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regulator Trai to fix the reserve price at Rs 1,658 crore for start-up 4.4 Mhz airwaves, and not to allow old operators in this round of auction.

"Spirit of 2008 should be maintained. It was about issuing new licenses. Therefore, incumbent should not be allowed to participate in the auction...The auction should be about issue of fresh licence. Start with the last discovered price. The last discovered price was Rs 1,658 crore," Uninor Managing Director Sigve Brekke told reporters here.

Last week, the apex court had ordered cancellation of 122 2G licences, including 22 of Uninor's, terming them as illegal.

The court had asked the government to issue spectrum by way of auction after seeking Trai's recommendations and completing the process within four months.

Uninor is a joint venture between Norway's Telenor and Unitech. Telenor now holds 67.25 per cent share in the company.

Brekke said the company's recommendations to Trai's consultation paper were based on ensuring that consumers continue to benefit, while all operators are treated equally and fairly and that full transparency is maintained in the auction process.

Last week, Uninor had said it will participate in the auction but cannot assure whether it would succeed and thus kept the option to exit open.

Telenor also wrote off $ 721 million worth from Indian business. The foreign telecom firm claims to have invested over Rs 14,000 crore in India to buy equity and on rolling out services across the nation.