Ncell, a prominent private sector telecommunications provider in Nepal, has renewed its service operation license for the next five years.
The renewal was confirmed following a decision by the Council of Ministers on August 29.
Ncell has paid the first installment of NPR 5 billion as part of the license renewal fee.
“Ncell has renewed its service operation license by paying the required amount for the first installment as per the Council of Ministers’ decision,” said Santosh Paudel, spokesperson for the Nepal Telecommunication Authority.
“The remaining three installments will be settled with 10 percent interest,” he told Khabarhub.
Under the Telecommunication Act of 2053 and related regulations, Ncell had requested the option to pay the renewal fee in installments. This request had previously delayed the renewal process.
The Council of Ministers agreed on August 29 to allow Ncell to pay the renewal fee in four installments.
Consequently, Ncell completed the renewal process on Sunday by paying the first installment of 5 billion rupees.
Earlier, on May 27, Ncell had paid 4 billion rupees to the Nepal Telecommunication Authority and requested an installment facility for the remaining balance.
However, due to legal constraints, a decision on this request was not immediately possible.
With the renewal of its license, Ncell will continue its operations for the next five years.
Following this period, as stipulated by law and regulations, the license will automatically come under government ownership.