Orange has announced a massive 700 MHz frequency 5G network rollout plan to cover 1,100 Spanish towns and cities (ciudads), including nearly 200 in Madrid and Catalonia, with 140 of them having a population exceeding 50,000 citizens. The 700MHz frequency band is the most practical option for 100 per cent national coverage says Orange, since its long outdoor reach and penetration indoors make it omnipresent. “This band will enable ultra-low latency services and allow the implementation of massive IoT and machine-to-machine communications” said Orange’s release.
Spectrum purchase was a coup
In the last spectrum auction, Orange spent €523 million on two portions of 10MHz in the 700MHz frequency band, giving it the largest amount of spectrum in the two priority bands for 5G technology. Orange also has 110 MHz in the 3.5 GHz frequency band. In its financial disclosure for September 2021 Orange claimed its 5G coverage reaches more than half the population and it has 620,000 5G customers. In September 2021, Orange switched on its first 700 MHz 5G node at the facilities of the Polytechnic University of Valencia. This was used to create a Valencian Community use case that would be part of the foundation of Orange’s 5G National Plan.
Autonomous cars are covered
Orange says its low frequency spectrum pockets within the 700 Mhz band are the best option for networking autonomous cars, once the electric vehicle industry materialises. In the short term, the 700 Mhz slices will complement the 3.5GHz frequency band already deployed, says Orange. Its main function will be to improve the upstream data service (the information sent from the user to the network) of 5G users.
Urban coverage details
The operator will deploy 700 MHz 5G nodes in the mountain areas around Madrid, so that teleworking will be possible in the distritos of San Lorenzo del Escorial, Colmenar Viejo, Collado Villalba and Soto del Real. Smaller towns will also be able to take advantage of 5G technology on 700 MHz band. In Catalonia, more than 160 ciudads will be covered including Castelldefels, Manresa, Mataró, Sabadell, Hospitalet de Llobregat y Terrasa. The plan includes Móstoles, Parla, Pinto, Alcalá de Henares, Fuenlabrada, Torrejón de Ardoz, Leganés and Alcobendas. Of the 1,100 towns and cities being covered 820 have a population between 1,000 and 50,000 citizens. There are 140 towns covered, in 30 provinces, which have under 1,000 citizens.
Rural coverage
Orange promised its 5G rollout will promote the development of the rural areas, particularly farms. The 5G National Plan saw it work with Agroamb, Ericsson and Qampo to develop a use case for using sensors connected to the IOT over 5G to manage crops.