Tata Teleservices on Thursday said that its incremental capital expenditure for 3G services will be not more than Rs 1,000 crore. The company has won 3G licences in nine of the 22 telecom circles in the country for Rs 10,635.15 crore. ?Our networks are already 3G-compliant, we just have to work on the 3G configuration, a part which will cost us very little. Hence, the incremental capex for us wil be less,? said Anil Sardana, MD of TTSL.

As per analysts, Tatas have bagged 3G licences in those nine circles that drive approximately 43% of its revenue. Despite absence from metro circles like Delhi and Mumbai, Tatas? 3G valuation at about 1.4 times of its revenues was the second highest after Aircel?s bid. Aircel emerged to be the highest bidder for 3G at about 1.5 times its revenue.

To strategise its 3G offerings, TTSL is banking on its partnership with the Japanese major, NTT DoCoMo. In late 2008, Docomo picked up a 26% equity stake in TTSL for about Rs 13,070 crore ($2.7 billion) or an enterprise value of Rs 50,269 crore ($10.38 billion). ?We have a good partner who is very proficient and the big daddy of 3G technology globally. We will take a lot of inputs from them as they are highly experienced in 3G technology and services,? Sardana added.

DoCoMo brings in significant technology and service experience in 3G which they have pioneered in the world. So, the partnership with them puts TTSL in a different league. With over 53 million customers, DoCoMo is one of the leading mobile companies in the globe.

Customers include the 46 million who subscribe to FOMA, the world?s first 3G mobile service based on W-CDMA technology. The company came into the spotlight in 1999, when it launched i-Mode, the first mobile internet service that challenged the domination of PCs. The Japanese giant is also the first to launch a handset with wallet transactions through which consumers can pay their bills like a credit card.

Sardana has taken over the leadership position at Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Ltd (TTML) last month after its former managing director Mukund Rajan joined Tata Capital. TTML has licences to operate in Mumbai, Maharashtra and Goa circles.

Sardana sidestepped media queries on possible merger between TTSL and TTML. ?It is important for us to understand that this is the first step towards achieving operational integration between the two entities. We will continue to remain two separate entities, maintaining complete transparency on the operation side,? he added.