The move is part of the company’s strategy to establish a network infrastructure leasing partnership with the state agency for the long run. This is also part of the company’s preparation with CAT to be ready to deal with the expiration of DTAC’s 1800MHz and 850MHz concessions under CAT in mid-September this year.

Bawa said that the talks with CAT on this network infrastructure lease arrangement were expected to be concluded soon.

After the concession ends, DTAC is obliged by the concession contract to transfer the network asset under the concession to CAT under a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis.

However, the company will need to lease back this network asset from CAT to provide long-term network services after the concession ends.

This will give time to its 1800MHz and 850MHz customers to potentially migrate to other networks without any service disruption.

If there is no auction of DTAC spectra after the concession ends, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) notification on a Measure for Temporary Subscriber Protection in case of Licence, Concession or Mobile Service Agreement Expires (remedial measures) requires the company to continue the mobile services for a so-called remedy period to give time to the customers of the two spectra to migrate to other networks, but such a remedy period will not last more than one year after the concession ended.

DTAC’s senior vice president of the regulatory division, Narupon Rattanasamaharn, said that if need be, the remedy period could be further extended, depending on the NBTC’s decision.

Bawa added that DTAC does not just want to utilise the CAT network asset only during the remedy period but on a longer term basis.

Last week DTAC assured its customers that they would not experience any interruption to network services after the company’s dual-spectrum concession expires.

Its assurance was in reaction to local reports that NBTC member Prawit Leesathapornwongsa had said that no spectrum auctions would be held until late this year.

DTAC said that it was well aware of the situation, and therefore would ensure uninterrupted network services to customers after the end of its concession.

The NBTC was earlier expected to auction DTAC’s 1800MHz and 850MHz spectra in May this year.

However, the agency’s board last month resolved to put the brakes on the auction plan, pending the Council of State’s reply as to whether it had the authority to call for bids as an acting regulator. The Council of State has yet to reply to the regulator.

The six-year term of the existing commissioners ended on October 7 last year, but the new NBTC law allows them to continue in the same capacity until they are replaced. The process of selecting new seven commissioners is expected to be finished in April.

On a separate matter, Bawa is hopeful that DTAC and TOT would soon be able to jointly get the 2.3GHz wireless broadband service off the ground.

DTAC is still waiting for the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to finish examining its partnership contract with TOT to develop the fourth-generation wireless broadband service on the TOT’s 2.3-gigahertz spectrum.

TOT granted the partnership deal to DTAC in May 2017. The finish of the contract examination by the OAG will pave way for both partners to enter into the 2.3GHz partnership contract.

Bawa said that DTAC is committed to long-term investment in Thailand.

“We’re working hard to make sure that we’re ready for the end of the concession. We’re also working hard to make sure we’ll secure the 2.3GHz contract. The important thing is that we want to ensure that our customers will continue to get DTAC services uninterrupted,” he said.

Besides the 1800MHz and 850MHz concessions granted by CAT, DTAC has operated a 2.1GHz mobile service under the NBTC licensing regime.