Islamabad – A fresh audit report has revealed that Zong (China Mobile Pakistan) misused spectrum worth Rs53.5 billion by continuing operations even after its 2G license expired in October 2019.
The Frequency Allocation Board (FAB) had initially granted Zong temporary spectrum in 2007 to overcome Indian CDMA signal interference along border areas. This allocation, intended for one year, was extended multiple times until the 2019 license expiry.
Despite this, Zong continued using the spectrum without authorization. The audit further noted that the company deployed the frequencies for 4G LTE services, violating its license terms. In December 2020, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) ordered Zong to vacate the frequencies and pay penalties at $29.5 million per MHz.
However, neither FAB cancelled the spectrum nor did PTA recover charges, even though Islamabad High Court dismissed Zong’s petitions in 2024. The operator later challenged the ruling in the Supreme Court, arguing that cross-border interference had forced it to rely on additional spectrum.
Auditors warned that regulatory inaction and repeated extensions have caused severe financial losses to the treasury, with the issue being highlighted in earlier audit reports as well.