At least three firms expressed an interest in buying the State's last remaining third generation (3G) mobile phone licence before a deadline of yesterday evening.

Meteor, Smart Telecom and Eircom all submitted expressions of interest for the €114 million licence to the Commission for Communication Regulation (ComReg), which is now preparing a contest for the licence.

The expressions of interest in the 3G licence carry no financial commitment.

However, to proceed to the next stage of the process applicants will have to pay €10,000 to buy tender documents to enter the 3G contest.

3G licences enable companies to build and operate a mobile phone network capable of carrying high speed data services such as video clips.

The licence would also provide firms such as Eircom and Smart Telecom with a way into the mobile sector.

However, it is estimated it would cost about €300 million to build a 3G network, a figure that may make it uneconomical to proceed with a bid for the licence.

Some analysts have speculated that Eircom's initial expression of interest in the 3G licence is tied up with the current auction of Meteor. Smart Telecom and Meteor only expressed an interest in the licence following Eircom's contact with ComReg.

Eircom, Smart Telecom and a consortium led by Denis O'Brien are all competing to buy Meteor, which is owned by the US firm Western Wireless. The US group is selling all its international mobile firms following its merger with the US firm Alltel.

One source said that Eircom was keeping its options open by expressing an interest in the 3G licence. It means that it has another potential entry back into the mobile sector even if it loses out in its bid to acquire Meteor.

Final bids for Meteor are due in this evening from the three shortlisted parties. It is estimated that the mobile firm could attract bids worth up to €400 million. It could also be sold to a bigger player such as T-Mobile as part of a package including Western Wireless' other international mobile operations.