Huawei plans 5G trials in India, seeks tie-up with local operator

Huawei wants to be the first one in India to conduct 5G trials and is engaged with the DoT regarding allocation of test spectrum

Chinese telecom equipment major Huawei plans to start conducting field trials on 5G from December-end onwards in India, by partnering one of the telecom operators. The Centre, however, needs to allot test spectrum to the company for the proposed trials to take place.

According to Huawei India Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Jay Chen, the company wants to be the first one in India to conduct 5G trials and is engaged with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) regarding allocation of test spectrum. 

“We have given a detailed proposal to the DoT. We have asked for 100Mhz spectrum in 3,400-3,600Mhz band for the trials,” Chen told Business Standard. 

It is pertinent to mention here that currently there are 150 field trials on 5G going on across the world but none is happening in India. If Huawei is able to execute the trial by December-end, it may be the first company to do it in India. Huawei is already working with Bharti Airtel for a laboratory test on 5G technology.   

“We intend to conduct the field trials from December-end onwards. The trials will go on for three-four quarters, or more. It could happen in one of the metro cities,” Chen added.  The Centre will be forming a high-level committee that will oversee the 5G trials. Huawei has already received an invitation from the DoT to be a part of 5G trials in the country.

“We have received an official invitation from the DoT on September 27,” Chen said. 

The DoT has also approached Ericsson, Nokia, Samsung and Cisco, among others, for development of 5G applications and conducting trials on 5G. The commercial roll-out of 5G is expected to take place in India in 2020. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has already given the reserve price for 5G spectrum but telecom operators feel the price is too steep for the industry, grappling with financial stress. 

COAI Director General Rajan Mathews recently said the reserve price for proposed spectrum band for 5G services in 3,300-3,600 megahertz (MHz) frequency has been fixed at Rs 4.92 billion per MHz for a pan-Indian block of 20 MHz. Going by global standards, the price per MHz for 5G spectrum is on the higher side as compared to other countries. 

Also, if an operator wants to offer full-scale 5G services, it needs to get around 100 MHz spectrum, in 3,300-3,600 MHz band, meaning the telco has to cough up around Rs 490 billion.