The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) said four mobile operators have been approved to take part in an upcoming 5G spectrum auction, the regulator said in a statement.
Hi3G Access, Net4Mobility, Telia Sverige and Teracom have been approved for participation in the 3.5 GHz and 2.3 GHz auctions. The auction in the 3.5 GHz band starts on November 10.
“In accordance with new legislation, which entered into force on January 1 2020, an examination of applications has been conducted in consultation with the Swedish Armed Forces and the Swedish Security Service, to ensure that the use of radio equipment in these bands does not cause harm to Sweden´s security,” PTS said.
“PTS has decided on license conditions that address the assessments made by the Swedish Armed Forces and the Swedish Security Service. The license holder shall take necessary technical and organizational actions to safeguard that the radio use according to the license does not cause harm to Sweden’s security.”
PTS highlighted that new installations and new implementation of central functions for the radio use in the frequency bands must not be carried out with products from Chinese vendors Huawei or ZTE. “If existing infrastructure for central functions is to be used to provide services in the concerned frequency bands, products from Huawei and ZTE must be phased out on January 1 2025 at the latest,” PTS added.
The regulator also said that if these central functions are dependent of staff or functions placed in foreign countries, such dependencies must be phased out and, if necessary, be replaced by functions or staff placed in Sweden.
PTS highlighted that central functions are the functions in the radio access network, the transmission network, the core network and the service and maintenance network that are necessary to maintain network functionality and electronic communication services provided by the license holder.
In July, the U.K. announced that Huawei’s gear will be completely removed from the country’s 5G networks by the end of 2027, following recommendations by the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC).
The government also confirmed that it will also implement a total ban on the purchase of new Huawei kit for 5G, starting next year.
The move represented a complete U-turn for the U.K. government, which had previously allowed Huawei to continue providing equipment to local 5G networks, with certain restrictions.
The decision by the U.K. government to ban and remove Huawei from the country’s 5G networks by 2027 would severely delay the operators’ 5G rollout plans and would hit the local economy by £18.2 billion ($23.5 billion), according to a recent report commissioned by the Chinese vendor.
Other European governments such as Germany and France are still considering potential restrictions for the use of Huawei’s gear in 5G networks.
