France had a total of 31,650 authorized 5G sites as of January 1, of which 22,180 were declared technically operational by the local mobile carriers, according to the latest information provided by France’s spectrum agency ANFR.
ANFR said that the number of authorized 5G sites during December increased by 2.2% compared to the previous month.
The agency said that almost all of the 5G sites have been authorized on existing cellular sites, already used by 2G, 3G or 4G technologies.
In France, mobile operators are already providing 5G services through the 700 MHz, 2.1 GHz and 3.5 GHz spectrum bands.
ANFR said that a total of 18,929 sites are authorized in the 700 MHz band (Free Mobile), of which 13,504 are already technically operational. Also, ANFR said that 12,486 sites are authorized in the 2.1 GHz band (Bouygues Telecom, Orange and SFR), but 7,433 are technically operational.
Meanwhile, 15,208 sites are authorized in the 3.5 GHz band (Bouygues Telecom, Free Mobile, Orange and SFR), of which 9,185 are declared technically operational.
Free Mobile had the highest number of operational 5G sites as of the end of December, with 13,578 followed by Bouygues Telecom (5,940), SFR (4,818) and Orange (3,046).
Some of the authorized 5G sites are shared by the mobile operators, the agency said.
In addition, 55,801 4G sites were authorized in mainland France as of January 1, of which 51,294 are in service.
lliad subsidiary Free Mobile previously stated that its 5G footprint currently covers 62% of the population, up from 52% in mid-May and nearly 40% at the end of 2020.
Free Mobile said that its 5G network currently reaches 9,100 municipalities across France. It also said the firm had already commissioned a total of 10,200 5G sites.
For its 5G network, Free Mobile uses frequencies in the 700 MHz band as well as frequencies in the 3.5 GHz band which Free acquired in a French spectrum auction in 2020.
Bouygues Telecom initially launched 5G in 20 cities across France in December 2020. The French operator said it expects to achieve nationwide coverage by the end of 2021. The current roll-out phase will rely on the 3.5 GHz and 2.1 GHz bands.
French telco Orange has already activated 5G in over 160 cities across France, the operator’s CEO Stéphane Richard previously said. Some of the initial cities covered by Orange’s 5G network include Marseille, Nice, Le Mans and Angers. Orange initially launched commercial 5G services in 15 municipalities at the beginning of December 2020.
Meanwhile, SFR initially launched its 5G commercial network in Nice in November 2020. According to recent press reports, SFR currently provides 5G services in 2,100 municipalities across France.
