(Telecompaper) Italy's Ministry of Economic Development (MISE) announced that the national 5G spectrum tender has so far raised EUR 5.1 billion after 9 competitive days of bidding. The five companies vying for spectrum in the in 694-790 MHz, 26.5-27.5 GHz and 3.6-3.8 GHz bands Telecom Italia (TIM), Wind Tre, Vodafone, Fastweb and Iliad have so far bid more than double the reserve price of EUR 2.5 billion and over EUR 1 billion more than the EUR 3.95 billion raised in the 4G multi-band auction held back in 2011. Competition is particularly fierce for the 4 blocks made available in the 3.7GHz range, which have brought offers totalling EUR 2.9 billion, with the 26GHz spectrum attracting bids of EUR 164 million.