Grameenphone, the country's leading mobile phone operator, is set to deposit the second instalment of Tk 1,000 crore with the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) in line with a Supreme Court order in February.

The operator would have to pay the sum by 31 May as per the court order, but it has informed the commission that it would send the payment on Tuesday, BTRC Chairman Md Jahurul Haque told The Daily Star.

The development brings to a close a protracted tug-of-war between the telecom regulator and the Norwegian Telenor Group subsidiary that started at the beginning of last year over unpaid dues amounting to Tk 12,579.95 crore.

The regulator had tightened the leash on Grameenphone to get it to pay the sum, much to the detriment of the operator's business.

For instance, the operator had used up its numbering series but was not permitted to either recycle the dormant numbers nor get a new prefix, as a result of which it could not sell new connections.

The operator began the year with 7.65 crore active customers, but in February and March, it lost more 1.58 per cent market share, according to a report of the BTRC.

Grameenphone faced a scarcity of numbers from the beginning of the quarter that negatively impacted the subscriber base, said Yasir Azman, chief executive officer of the operator, while releasing the January-March quarter financial report, recently.

"We continued to face challenges in the first quarter of 2020. The restrictions placed on us by our regulator by not issuing NOCs [no-objection certificates] lasted until March, which impacted our planned investment in the country," he added.

But now, the operator is bringing the matter to a close by paying just one-sixth the sum the telecom regulator was holding out for. Earlier in February, the operator had paid Tk 1,000 crore to the telecom watchdog.

"With this balance adjustable deposit, we will have fully complied with the court directions relating to the injunction," Grameenphone said in a statement yesterday.

The operator, which has 45 per cent of the mobile phone subscribers hooked to its network, appreciated the recent collaboration with the regulator and looked forward to the continued cooperation in fully restoring normal operations.

The operator would get all the NOCs once it gives the second instalment, said a senior official of the BTRC.

The commission has taken preparation to receive the sum from Grameenphone and is organising a media session.

In another development, Robi, the second-largest carrier, would pay Tk 27.60 crore as its fifth and last instalment within a few days.

Robi paid the first instalment of Tk 27.60 crore on January 15 and deposited the same amount in each of the following months. It would have to make the last instalment by May 31.

The BTRC is receiving a huge sum from the two operators following separate audits.

Based on its audit into Robi's books, the telecom regulator claimed Tk 867.23 crore in unpaid revenue shares, taxes and late fees.