Viettel to enter Dominican Republic telecom market via spectrum award

The Dominican Republic is set to welcome Viettel Global as a major nationwide telecommunications operator following a spectrum auction conducted by the Dominican Institute of Telecommunications (Indotel). Under the 20-year concession, the Vietnamese state-owned company secured 240 MHz of spectrum across the 700 MHz, 2.3 GHz, and 3.6 GHz bands.

President Luis Abinader and Indotel President Guido Gómez Mazara defended the auction process, describing it as competitive, technical, and transparent. Officials noted that the current market is an oligopoly, with Claro and Altice controlling over 95% of the mobile market. The entry of Viettel is intended to drive competition, lower consumer fees—which currently exceed the regional average by approximately 22%—and encourage necessary infrastructure investment.

Reports indicate that Viettel may collaborate with US-based Qualcomm for its technological needs, including 6G research, rather than using Chinese equipment from Huawei. Additionally, Claro Dominicana was awarded an extra 20 MHz in the 700 MHz band during the same process.