Telus now holds an average of 104 megahertz of mid-band spectrum in the 3.5 GHz and 3.8 GHz ranges nationwide
In sum – what to know:
Total investment – Canadian operator Telus has spent $234m on 3800 MHz spectrum licences in British Columbia and Alberta.
National holdings – National 3.5 GHz and 3.8 GHz holdings now total 104 MHz for industrial, private network, and AI apps.
Residual auction – Process mostly targeted unsold frequencies in Western Canada, where Telus secured the largest share.
Canadian carrier Telus has acquired new 3.8 GHz spectrum licenses in British Columbia and Alberta for $317.6 million ($234.1 million) following Canada’s residual auction for unsold frequencies.
The mid-band licenses will support the operator’s ongoing 5G rollout and help expand network capacity across Canada. Telus said the additional spectrum will complement its existing holdings and support new 5G applications, including industrial automation, private wireless networks, public safety communications, and AI-related services.
Residual auctions put up for sale spectrum that was previously unsold in another auction or was returned. In a release, the Canadian government said that a total of 196 licences out of 207 available were awarded to three Canadian operators. Rival telco Rogers acquired 30 licenses in the 3.8 GHz range. Bell, meanwhile, acquired a total of 63 blocks in the 2 GHz, 2.3 GHz, and 3.8 GHz bands.
With this latest purchase, Telus said it now holds an average of 104 megahertz of mid-band spectrum in the 3.5 GHz and 3.8 GHz ranges nationwide. The spectrum is expected to improve both capacity and coverage across urban and rural areas, the telco said.
Last year, Telus had opened what it claimed to be Canada’s first fully sovereign AI factory in Rimouski, Quebec, creating a domestic hub for advanced computing capacity.
The North American telco noted that the facility, powered by Nvidia GPUs and infrastructure designed by HPE, will provide Canadian organizations with access to AI computing resources while ensuring data remains within national borders.
The project is designed to address rising concerns over data sovereignty by keeping sensitive information under Canadian control. Telus said the facility is built, owned, and operated in Canada, with multiple layers of security and compliance.
