Brazil’s National Telecommunications Agency (Agencia Nacional de Telecomunicacoes, Anatel) has reportedly approved the transfer of spectrum licences currently held by Oi Movel to its rivals, TIM Brasil, Telefonica Brasil (Vivo) and Claro Brasil. As per government documentation discovered by TeleTime, the spectrum assets will be transferred via three holding companies: Garliava, Cozani and Jonava.
Vivo will acquire the Garliava assets, which include authorisations for the use of the 900MHz, 1800MHz and 2.5GHz bands, chiefly in the Northeast. TIM, meanwhile, will assume control of the Cozani frequencies, which are said to include the 900MHz, 1800MHz and 2.5GHz bands, alongside 2100MHz spectrum; the Cozani assets encompass the North, Northeast and Southeast regions, notably Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro. While Claro will not gain any spectrum via the deal, Jonava is said to include secondary spectrum rights and RAN sharing agreements.
According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, Oi’s mobile unit was sold at auction on 14 December 2020, generating a final bid of BRL16.5 billion (USD3.25 billion). Anatel approved the deal on 31 January this year and the Administrative Council for Economic Defence (Conselho Administrativo de Defesa Economica, CADE) green-lit the deal on 9 February.