Mexico disqualifies mobile network consortia, leaving one bid

The Mexican government on Friday disqualified one of the consortia competing in a tender to build and run a national wholesale mobile network, leaving just one bid remaining for the long-delayed project.

An official at the Ministry of Communications and Transport said at a news conference that the group made up of Rivada Networks and Spectrum Frontier did not present the required 1 billion peso (US$52 million) bid bond on time and so was disqualified.

That leaves a consortium called Altan, which includes Mexican companies Megacable and conglomerate Alfa's unit Axtel, as the sole bidder.

Depending on the bid, the network could be one of the largest infrastructure projects carried out under President Enrique Peña Nieto. The winner is scheduled to be announced on Nov. 17.

The network, which must cover at least 85 percent of the population, was part of a sweeping telecoms reform aimed at curbing the dominance of Carlos Slim's América Móvil.