The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) said that it completed a 5G spectrum auction through which it awarded frequencies to the country’s main operators.
In a statement, the regulator said that the total auction proceeds amount to SEK2.31 billion ($270 million).
PTS noted all 320 megahertz at 3.5 GHz was assigned, with Telia securing 120 megahertz for SEK760.2 million; Net4Mobility (a joint initiative by Tele2 and Telenor’s local units) 100 megahertz for SEK665.5 million; and Hi3G 100 megahertz for SEK491.2 million.
Meanwhile, Teracom Group took all 80 megahertz on offer in the 2.3GHz band for a total of SEK400 million, PTS said.
The auction started yesterday (January 19) and closed after four rounds of bidding. The licenses for the 3.5 GHz band will be valid for 25 years.
The Swedish government had banned Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE from participating in the rollout of 5G networks over security concerns.
In a statement, Telia said that it has secured a critical asset that will lay the groundwork for the continued expansion of 5G across Sweden and help strengthen the digital competitiveness in the coming years.
“With the acquisition of 120 megahertz, which is more than any other operator in Sweden, Telia demonstrates its commitment to extend its network leadership position in Sweden with 5G. The new frequencies will allow us to build fast and energy efficient 5G networks with low latency that will help drive the development of sustainable digital societies by offering consumers, enterprises and public sector state-of-the-art mobile connectivity,” said Anders Olsson, CEO Telia Sweden.
Telia launched its 5G network on May 25, 2020, which has now been deployed to 20 cities.
In a joint statement, Tele2 and Telenor said the combination of 3.5 GHz with existing 700 MHz frequencies would enable Net4Mobility to expand its 5G network nationwide and conduct “a significant upgrade” of its 4G network.
“This is an important step for the 5G rollout in Sweden and I am happy we have acquired the spectrum needed to make true 5G widely accessible across the country. We have already brought 5G to the largest cities and our ambition is to bring 5G to 99% of consumers within three years”, said Kaaren Hilsen, CEO of Telenor Sweden.
The two companies have also finalized their vendor procurement process and have selected Ericsson and Nokia as partners for the rollout of their joint nationwide 5G radio access network.
Last year Tele2 launched its 5G network in Sweden, which has now been rolled out to more than 30 cities nationwide.
“Together with Telenor, we will invest billions in our largest network project in Sweden to date, upgrading existing base stations and add thousands of new ones throughout Sweden”, said Yogesh Malik, CTIO of Tele2.
