Slovakia's telecommunications regulator TUSR has invited interested candidates for fourth-generation (4G) mobile licences to submit their offers by October 7, 2013. The regulator has published the call for participation in the electronic auction for the long-term evolution (LTE) licences in the available frequency ranges of 800, 1,800 and 2,600 MHz bands. It is currently working on an unofficial English translation of the call, which will be published on its website.

TUSR expects the tender to be finalised by the end of 2013 and construction of the LTE networks, which enable high-speed data transmission, to start at the beginning of next year. According to the stipulated rules, the operators’ LTE networks should cover at least half of Slovakia’s population by the end of 2018.

The three mobile firms that operate in Slovakia, Deutsche Telekom's Slovak Telekom, France Telecom's Orange and Spanish Telefonica's O2, have expressed interest to participate in the tender. It is expected that the 1,800MHz band will be allocated to an operator, which is not currently active on the Slovak mobile market.

Other companies that have shown interest in the licence include Slovak triple-play services provider Slovanet, Slovak TV and radio broadcasting services provider Towercom, and VelaTel Global Communications, according to TUSR. According to media reports, PPF Mobile Services, a unit of the PPF investment group, belonging to the richest Czech Petr Kellner, Vietnamese telecoms services provider Viettel and Czech financial and investment group J&T Group may also take part in the tender. The companies that took part in the recent public consultation process were Orange Slovakia, Slovak Telekom, O2, Towercom, Satro, and Swan.