The Ama Group of businessman Amable Aguiluz V, along with its Middle Eastern partners, is joining the bidding for the third major telecom player that will challenge the duopoly of PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom Inc.
Ama Telecommunications Inc., a subsidiary of Ama Education System that pioneered IT education in the country, bought bid documents on Oct. 31, 2018 from the National Telecommunication Commission to join the auction.
“Yes, we bought the bid documents to officially express our interest together with our Middle Eastern partners with technical and financial experience,” Amatelco president and former Rep. Felizardo Colambo said.
Amatelco obtained in July 2016 a 25-year congressional franchise to construct, install, establish, operate and maintain for commercial purposes and in the public interest, wire and/or wireless telecommunications system in the Philippines.
Colambo said Amatelco would participate and bid as a member of a consortium of investors with prospect of delivering to consumers the highest committed level of service and lower subscription cost.
“If selected, our commitment is to build telecom infrastructure up to the farthest barangays in the Philippines which is more than compliant to the terms of reference of the bid,” he said.
More than 10 groups have expressed interest to join the bidding. The NTC said it would start receiving bids on Nov. 5 at 8 a.m. The deadline of submission is Nov. 7 at 10 a.m.
The Department of Information and Communications Technology said it would provisionally name the winning bidder on Nov. 7. The winner will be based on their scores which will be determined by a computer algorithm.
DICT acting Secretary Eliseo Rio Jr. said the winner would still undergo a post qualification process, which would involve verifying all the documents submitted.
The winning bidder will be chosen based on its highest committed level of service that cover three major criteria: national coverage (40 percent), internet speed (25 percent), and capital expenditures (35 percent).
The opening of bids on Nov. 7 will be announced on DICT’s Facebook page.