BAGHDAD, 18 July 2003 — Iraq’s US-led administration yesterday invited potential bidders for three mobile telephone licenses across the country to express their interest.

The licenses are one of the most potentially lucrative contracts to be offered in Iraq since the ousting of Saddam Hussein in April.

“Companies, individuals or consortia that may wish to apply for a mobile communications license are invited to notify their interest to the CPA,” the Coalition Provisional Authority said in a statement.

The statement did not say whether Iraq had decided to use US technology or a rival more widespread European system that is used throughout the rest of the Middle East.

The CPA said it would issue a request for proposals in the week of July 28 that would be available to the firms that express interest. Proposals would be due 14 days later.

The CPA said it would award one license each for northern, central and southern regions of Iraq. Applicants are required to bid for at least two regional licenses.

“The CPA has chosen a regional licensing approach in order to enable the rapid roll out of services to the main population centers,” the statement said. Each license will be for 24 months.

The CPA said the 24-month period would let operators recover their investment but is also short enough to enable a future Iraqi authority to make key decisions on the long-term development of the sector.

“This is considerably shorter than is normal for a mobile telecommunications license but reflects the special circumstances in Iraq,” the statement said.

The issue about which technology will be chosen for the national networks has become increasingly thorny, and an Iraqi official said earlier this month that no decision had been made.

A decision to use the global system for mobile communications (GSM) standard, widely used in Europe, would be a blow to US firms hoping to build a wireless network in Iraq based on the CDMA (code division multiple access) standard developed by California-based Qualcomm Inc.

One US lawmaker has urged US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to ensure that US-backed technology is deployed to safeguard American jobs and profits.

The rival GSM technology would allow Iraqi cellphone users to travel the region using just one phone.