New Delhi, Jan. 31 (PTI): The Tatas have got 11 new unified licences for offering mobile services and have paid about Rs 450 crore to the department of telecom towards a one-time entry fee.

The Tatas were issued letters of intent for 12 circles last month while the company has signed licence agreement for 11 leaving out Madhya Pradesh.

With this, the Tatas would have presence in 17 circles.

The new licences are for circles of Uttar Pradesh (E), Uttar Pradesh (W), West Bengal, Calcutta, Bihar, Orissa, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Kerala.

When contacted, Ashok Sud, chief regulatory officer of the Tatas, said “We have received licences for 11 circles. For Madhya Pradesh some additional documents need to be prepared and we will complete the formalities for MP soon.”

He said the company was contemplating to start services in all new circles within six to nine months from now.

“We had started the planning for rolling out networks much before signing the licences. Now we can place orders for equipment. We hope to start services within the targeted period of up to nine months,” he added.

He, however, declined to give investment estimates saying the final figures have yet to be determined. Sud said the company had also furnished the stipulated bank guarantees and performance bank guarantees to DoT while signing the new licences.

At present, the company has been offering mobile and fixed line services in six circles, including Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.

Sunil Mittal-owned Bharti group has also applied for new unified licences in six circles, including Rajasthan, West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir among others.