The final batch of contracts to deploy open access 5G networks in rural areas of Italy have been awarded to a consortium comprising tower company INWIT and two of its telco shareholders, Telecom Italia (TIM) and Vodafone. The tender was split into six regional lots plus a separate contract covering the provinces of Trento and Bolzano, worth a combined EUR345.7 million (USD362.6 million).
Winning bidders will get up to 90% of their rollout costs paid by the government and must guarantee transmission speeds of at least 150Mbps to at least 40% of the 2,000 communities included in the tender. Work must be completed by end-June 2026.
TIM had previously won tenders worth EUR725 million for another batch of rural 5G rollouts. The Italian government says it has now committed EUR5.5 billion in public and private funding to its national broadband strategy.
Source: https://www.commsupdate.com/articles/2022/06/30/italy-awards-final-set-of-rural-5g-contracts/