Bharti Airtel awards 'multibillion' 5G gear extension deal to Nokia

The 'multi year' deal is the second 5G order announced by telecom operators in the last two-months

In its first big sourcing agreement since its August 2022 orders for 5G deployment, telecom major Bharti Airtel on Wednesday announced it had awarded to Nokia a multiyear, multibillion extension deal for 4G and 5G equipment across key Indian cities and states.

 

While Reliance Jio, another major telecom service provider, is yet to make further gear purchases, Vodafone Idea (Vi) had in September made public its $3.6 billion network equipment order to global majors Nokia, Ericsson and Samsung over a three-year period. Industry insiders say these deals could revive capital expenditure in India's telecom market, which had been low in the past two years, after some announcements at the start of the 5G rollout.

 

Bharti Airtel will deploy 5G equipment from Nokia, including from its 5G AirScale portfolio of base stations, baseband units and radios. Further, “Nokia will modernise Airtel's existing 4G network with multiband radios and baseband equipment, which can also support 5G”, Bharti Airtel informed stock exchanges. It will also leverage Nokia's MantaRay Network Management for intelligent network monitoring and management, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) -based tools covering digital deployment, optimisation and technical support. The company has stopped investing in 4G capacity and is rolling out 5G in markets where it sees 5G demand on mobile phones and fixed wireless access.

 

Longer timeframe

 

“This strategic partnership with Nokia will futureproof our network infrastructure and provide customers with unparalleled user experience, along with a network that will be eco-friendly and minimise environmental impact,” said Bharti Airtel Vice-Chairman & Managing Director Gopal Vittal.

 

Analysts, meanwhile, said the deal announced on Wednesday might be spread across a period longer than three years. “The Bharti Airtel MD had last month said the company’s FY25 capital expenditure would be lower than previous years, considering the massive 5G rollout that took place the previous year,” said an analyst who did not wish to be named.

 

In the first six months of FY25, Bharti had already made a capital expenditure of Rs 13,061 crore. The telco's capex had reached a high of Rs 33,353 crore in FY24, compared with Rs 28,057 crore in FY23, Rs 20,443 crore in FY22 and Rs 19,257 crore in FY21.

 

As at the end of September, the company had a customer base of 407 million in India — 75 per cent of them 4G and 5G customers — down by 2 million in the latest quarter, mainly on account of a subscriber churn following tariff hikes in July.

 

Nokia, which has supplied Bharti Airtel equipment in the past two decades, reportedly accounted for 45 per cent of the telco’s 5G rollout. Its president & chief executive, Pekka Lundmark, said: “This strategic agreement further solidifies our longstanding collaboration with Bharti Airtel and our India footprint. Our industry-leading AirScale portfolio and artificial intelligence-based services will enhance the Airtel network’s energy efficiency, enabling premium 5G capacity and connectivity with the highest service quality for subscribers.”

 

5G DEALS IN INDIA SO FAR

 

Aug 2022: Bharti Airtel announces major orders to Nokia and Ericsson

 

Oct 2022: Reliance Jio ropes in Nokia and Ericsson

 

Sep 2024: Vodafone Idea announces $3.6 billion deal with Nokia, Ericsson and Samsung

 

Nov 2024: Bharti Airtel announces multiyear, multibillion extension deal with Nokia