NBN Co has secured the bulk of spectrum licences in the 2.3GHz band - needed for its fixed wireless network - in rural and remote areas of Australia in an auction held at the ACMA\'s offices in Canberra this morning, 13 July.

NBN Co issued a statement saying it had secured "all the geographic coverage it needed" for its wireless network, and that it had bought spectrum in Western Australia, the Northern Territory, South Australia, outback Queensland and far west NSW.

NBN Co needed the licences in order to be able to complete coverage of its TD-LTE fixed wireless network that it will build to serve around half of the seven percent of Australian premises that it deems are beyond the economic reach of its fibre. Last month it awarded Ericsson a turnkey contract to build the network.

NBN Co was up against Telstra and vividwireless (bidding through a subsidiary) for a total of 48 licences covering vast areas of Australia.

It paid a total of $1.3m for 24 licences. Telstra paid $304,300 for 12 licences and vividwireless, $37,300 for four licences. The eight remaining licences for which there were no bidders were offered to vividwireless at a predetermined price.

There were three licences available in almost every area: one for 28MHz and two for 35MHz each. NBN Co secured the 2302MHz-2337MHz and 2337MHz-2365MHz licences in most of the areas for which bid, giving it 63MHz of contiguous spectrum. These areas were: Darwin, Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, South Western WA, Western NSW/Bourke, The Kimberly, South Australia, North Qld, Central Qld and Cameron Corner.

It also won the 2365MHz-2400MHz band in South Australia and South West WA and the 2337MHz-2365MHz band in Roxby Downs and Gascoyne/Pilbara.

Telstra took out 2365MHz-2400MHz in Darwin, Roxby Downs, The Mid West Radio Quiet Zone, Gascoyne Pilbara, the Goldfields, Northern Queensland and the Northern Territory and the 2302MHz -2337MHz band in Roxby Downs, The Mid West Radio Quiet Zone, Gascoyne Pilbara, The Goldfields and the Northern Territory

Vividwireless secured the 2365MHz-2400Gz licences in Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, Cameron Corner and Central Qld.