PTA Spokesman Khurram Mehran told Business Recorder that PTA was processing the case as per the court order.
Sources in cellular companies as well as PTA officials confirmed that first hearing on operators' application was held here on Tuesday where all the senior officials including chairman PTA and both members were present.
During the hearing, the operators presented their arguments and pleaded for licence renewal on the same terms and conditions as well as other benchmarks like rollout obligations on which the license of Ufone was renewed in 2014.
"We are ready to pay $291 million (around Rs 32 billion) ie. the same price Ufone paid in 2014 which is now around Rs 62 billion," said a senior official of a cellular company, who attended the hearing, on condition of anonymity.
The official went on to say that the price of around $450 million is too much for them and the request was presented before the Authority.
The official said that Islamabad High Court disposed of their petition while observing it a regulatory matter and directed the PTA to itself decide about licence renewal applications independently and with a new way by July 15.
Chief Justice IHC Athar Minallah while hearing the case had asked mobile operators to appear before the PTA on June 25. The court also observed that mobile companies can also file appeal in the court after the PTA decision on their applications for renewal of licences.
The cellular mobile licenses of Pakistan Mobile Communications Limited (Warid/Jazz) and Telenor Pakistan Limited (Telenor) expired on May 25, 2019 and are due for renewal. The licence of China Mobile Pakistan (CMPak Zong) is due for renewal on October 22, 2019. However, Jazz and Telenor had approached the IHC to decide on the terms of licence renewal in an equitable, fair and transparent way.