Myanmar invited local firms to step forward for a fourth mobile licence in what is becoming an increasingly competitive market.

In a two-stage process, local public companies with registered capital of at least $2.3 billion are invited to state their interest in the licence by 24 August, according to Reuters. Later, the winner will chose a foreign firm as its partner.

However, the country already has three operators up and running: Telenor, Ooredoo and MPT-KDDI. Telenor, in particular, is growing rapidly. At end-June, it had 9.5 million subscribers.

According to GSMA Intelligence, the country has rapidly reached a penetration rate of 27.5 per cent (Q2 2015).

Having chosen a local firm, the process will then likely take until the end of this year to find a foreign partner, raising the question of how many operators will step forward.

Back in May, state-owned ISP Yatanarpon Teleport (YTP) made clear its intention to form a consortium of local partners to bid for the country’s fourth mobile licence, marking it as a frontrunner.

Among potential bidders are Vietnam’s Viettel, which has previously stated its interest in entering the Myanmar market.

The announcement was initially made in the state-run Myanma Alin Daily.