Thailand’s telecoms regulator wants to auction spectrum in such a way as to enable LTE Advanced rollouts, enabling the country to make up for lost ground in its mobile broadband deployments, reports Bangkok Post.

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) wants to repurpose 17.5MHz of 900MHz spectrum currently used by Advanced Info Service (AIS) and 25MHz of 1.8GHz spectrum previously used by True Move and AIS subsidiary Digital Phone Company.

The spectrum will be offered using a “package bidding concept”, which allows bidders to make a single bid for a group of frequencies or licences.

LTE Advanced supports the aggregation of channels across frequency bands, enabling operators to offer higher-speed services. So an operator could use 900MHz and 1.8GHz allocations together to deliver mobile broadband connectivity.

The NBTC’s telecom committee is conducting a feasibility study of the package bidding, according to its chairman Settapong Malisuwan, who added that Thailand could potentially leapfrog 4G technology and jump straight to LTE-Advanced, or “4.5G”.

The NBTC is working with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to study auction methods, estimate spectrum values and set reserve prices and draft conditions for licenses. The ITU will submit its findings in December.

A public hearing and mock auction will follow between January and May.

LTE Advanced has been rolled out by SK Telecom and KT in South Korea while Australia’s Telstra is looking to launch it commercially by the end of the year.

Thailand reportedly raised THB41.63 billion (US$1.36 billion) through its 3G auction in October 2012. The auction was delayed by changes in government and resistance from state companies.