The executive said that Airtel will not aquire equipment from Chinese vendors for its 5G network deployment
Indian operator Bharti Airtel expects to deploy its 5G network using equipment from European vendors as well as Open RAN equipment, local press reported, citing the company’s CTO Randeep Sekhon.
“As per the national policies, we are not buying from Chinese vendors for the radio or any core equipment. The other two [Nokia and Ericsson] are very much there in our networks and we’re talking to everyone who can sell to India and follows India’s policies. We will be able to work not just with traditional vendors, but with O-RAN vendors as well. We are already in trial in Punjab with US-based Mavenir where we’re able to see 1 Gbps-plus speeds. So, necessarily, there will be a mix of vendors,” the executive said.
Sekhon also said that Airtel may look at acquiring 100 megahertz of 5G spectrum in the spectrum auction the Indian government will carry out this year, adding that the company was open to buy a lower amount of spectrum if base prices remain high.
“About 100 megahertz is ideal because that decides the speed and capacity, but if you look at European countries, there are operators who are using 40-60 megahertz; so, for early demand, around 40-60 megahertz is good. But if the government makes it really affordable, we would like to get as much spectrum as possible to also secure our future needs,” he added.
The executive said that Airtel will be technically ready to launch its 5G network two or three months after the local regulator awards 5G frequencies.
The government of India may lower the base price for 5G frequencies in the upcoming spectrum auction, according to recent press reports.
The decision to lower the price of 5G spectrum will potentially enable the participation of more operators and accelerate the rollout of 5G in India. The Indian government expects to award 5G frequencies in August or September.
The government had previously set the reserve price for 5G airwaves at INR4.92 billion ($64.1 million) per MHz of spectrum in the 3.3-3.6 GHz band.
Earlier this year, local operators said that the reserve price for the 5G spectrum needs to be cut down by more than 90% for the upcoming spectrum auction, with no upfront payment and a moratorium of 5-6 years.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is currently working on the 5G spectrum auctions recommendations and was expecting to submit these recommendations to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) by the end of March or April, according to previous reports.
India plans to award bands such as 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1.8 GHz, 2.1 GHz, 2.3 GHz, 2.5 GHz and 3.3-3.6 GHz bands. Through the spectrum auction, operators will be also able to bid for spectrum in the millimeter-wave band.
Indian operators Reliance Jio Infocomm, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea have previously received a six-month extension from the DoT to conduct 5G trials. With this extension, the carriers will be able to carry out 5G trials until May 2022. Initially, telcos had been authorized to test 5G technology until the end of November 2021.
In May last year, the DoT had awarded 5G trial spectrum for six months in the 700 Mhz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz bands, paving the way for local carriers to partner and develop 5G use cases.
