Cabinet to take final decision on issues like reserve price: Sibal

New Delhi, July 20 (ANI): Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal on Friday informed that the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) today decided that the final call on issues like reserve price, spectrum usage charges and terms of payment would be taken by the Cabinet

"The Empowered Group of Ministers discussed three specific issues today. Number one what should be the reserve price, number two what should be the spectrum usage charges and what should be the terms of payment," said Sibal.

"The Empowered Group of Ministers are going to make a specific recommendation on each of these issues in the Cabinet, so that the Cabinet decides," he added after the EGoM meeting that wads headed by Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram.

The EGoM had in its last meeting asked the Department of Telecom to prepare a matrix of reserve price in the range of Rs 12,000 crore to Rs 18,000 crore and calculate its impact analysis in the sector on the basis of spectrum usage charge in the range of 3 to 8 per cent.

The industry has, however, raised concerns over the model.

GSM industry body COAI had earlier written to Chidambaram that the new model being considered to fix spectrum base price would lead to hike in tariffs.

"By changing the payment model to lower upfront charges, higher revenue share...will not address the fundamental issue that the price is unsustainable and will significantly increase cost and thus invariably tariffs," COAI's Director General Rajan S Mathews wrote in the letter. (ANI)