The Danish Energy Authority has announced the conclusion of the auction of 5G frequencies that began on March 11.
In a release, the agency said that total revenue from the auction will be DKK 2.076 billion ($336 million). The winners must cover 60% of the population by the end of 2023 and 75% by the end of 2025, using the 3.5 GHz frequency band.
Local carriers TDC Net, 3 Denmark, and the Telia-Telenor joint venture, TT-Network have secured 5G licenses in this process.
TDC Net secured spectrum in the 1500 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2.3 GHz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz frequencies, while 3 Denmark obtained frequencies in the 2.1 GHz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz spectrum bands. Meanwhile, TT-Network secured frequencies in the 1.5 GHz MHz, 2.1 GHz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz bands.
The regulator said that the three winners will cover a total of 122 areas where there is poor coverage.
The Danish government also wanted to make frequencies in the 3.5 GHz frequency band available to companies and public institutions that want to establish private 5G networks over the next few years. In the auction, TT Network has won 60 megahertz in the 3.5 GHz frequency band, to which a rental obligation is attached. The rental obligation gives actors other than the mobile operators, such as companies, public institutions and universities, the right to lease frequencies from the TT Network for the purpose of establishing private 5G networks.
Danish operators started to deploy 5G technology in some parts of the country last year.
Local operator TDC said it had completed nationwide 5G deployment on December 1 after upgrading 3,800 mobile masts. The company said that over 50,000 users already had access to the 5G network as of December.
TDC initially launched 5G in September, using frequencies in the 3.5 GHz spectrum band. Initial deployments included the major Danish cities of Copenhagen, Odense, Aarhus and Helsingør.
Rival operators Telia and Telenor, who operate shared mobile infrastructure in Denmark, launched 5G in September. Telia and Telenor had announced that the first cities to get 5G were Copenhagen and Aalborg. Following this initial activation, the two companies said they will upgrade additional existing sites.
3 Denmark launched its 5G network in December in selected locations in the capital, Copenhagen. By the summer of 2022, 5G will be rolled out across the operator’s entire network. The carrier will initially use frequencies in the 700 MHz and 1.800 GHz bands to launch 5G services.
Denmark completed the auction of spectrum in the 700 MHz, 900 MHz and 2.3 GHz bands in April 2019.
