Nokia agreed to become the sole 5G RAN supplier for a Telia and Telenor joint network in Denmark, as the Finnish vendor expanded a partnership with the duo to cover the next-generation mobile technology.

The vendor explained it will support the modernisation of the Telenor, Telia joint network (TTN), which covers 3 million customers, as the operators begin to step up their 5G rollout after picking up 3.5GHz spectrum in a multi-band auction earlier this year.

Their agreement with Nokia to upgrade to 5G initially covers Denmark’s four largest cities before expanding to most of its customers during 2022, with the vendor providing its Airscale 5G RAN portfolio and Massive MIMO antennas to upgrade infrastructure.

TTN launched in 2012 and Nokia said it had worked with both operators for over a decade, most recently on 5G to trial the technology on a shared network, so its deal to become its exclusive supplier is hardly a surprise.

The joint network has more than 4,300 sites, with both companies owning a 50 per cent share each in the network.

However, while sharing infrastructure, the respective companies control separate retail brands in the country, competing against incumbent TDC and 3 Denmark. All four launched 5G services in H2 2020.

Lars Thomsen, CEO of Telenor Denmark said with its nationwide rollout, “Danes will experience higher speeds and better coverage in both urban and peri-urban areas”.