As part of the increasing liberalisation of the telecom industry, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has granted Long Distance International (LDI) licences to two additional businesses.
According to PTA sources, Dynasty Telecom Private Limited and HG Telecom Private Limited received LDI licence offers from the authorities. After the businesses paid a $0.5 million licensing fee and complied with other conditions, PTA offered the LDI licences.
For the installation of a 1,500 km optical fibre line, both businesses are now submitting $10 million in bank guarantees. Once the bank guarantees have been submitted, they will be granted LDI licences.
According to the sources, there is no permission needed because both businesses are local and registered with the Pakistani Securities and Exchange Commission (SECP). International businesses or businesses with foreign directors are required to obtain the approval from the Interior Ministry.
The two private businesses will be permitted to offer fixed-line telecommunication services across the nation following the issuance of the LDI licence. The two new businesses will bring the total number of LDI operators up to 19. There are now 17 LDI operators operating in Pakistan, including Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) and National Telecom Corporation (NTC).
The PTA opened LDI licenses after eight years, and the first LDI license in eight years was issued to Cyber Internet Service Private Limited on 14 June 2022.
