Bharti Airtel, Idea hit by 900 mega hertz concerns

Bharti Airtel  falls 1.9 percent, while Idea recovers from earlier falls to gain 0.6 percent after the Telecom Commission recommended mobile phone carriers give up all their airwave holdings in the more-efficient 900 mega hertz band during the renewal period for their permits.

The wireless providers can bid for the airwaves in an auction next year, or can buy replacement airwaves in the less efficient 1800 MHz band.

The recommendations, which would need to be approved by a ministerial panel, is opposed by the wireless industry which says it will cost about $24 billion more in capital outlay and will see carriers write off $4.7 billion worth of investment they already made on networks.

The ministerial panel is scheduled to meet Thursday afternoon but may not necessarily decide on the issue.

Citigroup says re-bidding for both the 900MHz and the expected 1800 MHz spectrum could result in a 70 rupees per share hit for Bharti and 52 rupees per share for IDEA.

However, Citigroup says the expected impact is largely priced in, according to a note dated on Wednesday.

"We believe that risk of any material earnings cut is low as near-term pain appears factored in its estimates," Citi says.