Telefónica has awarded Nokia the last part of its 5G core, completing the elimination of Huawei from critical Spanish networks, according to advances Expansion.
Why is it important. This move culminates the unofficial banishment of the Chinese giant from critical telecommunications infrastructure in Spain. An explicit government veto has not even been necessary.
The context. In 2019, Telefónica had chosen Huawei for its 5G corea decision that was surprising at the time, but international pressures, with the United States at the helm, have been forcing an immediate change of course.
The operator announced shortly after a strategy multicore which, in practice, has meant the beginning of the end for Huawei in its Spanish critical infrastructures.
- The estimated value of the new contract with Nokia is 15 million euros for six years.
- Huawei’s current presence in the 5G cores of the three large Spanish operators has been reduced to 0%.
behind the scenes. The replacement strategy requires caution and precision, following a meticulous schedule by phases and regions, in order to avoid any interruption of service to users while the transition is completed.
The entire process will take more than a year given its difficulty: this movement involves modifying critical infrastructure.
The current situation. The three large Spanish operators have expelled Huawei from their network cores:
- Telefónica divides it between Nokia and Ericsson.
- Orange awarded it to Ericsson.
- Vodafone chose Nokia.
The money trail. Huawei’s exit from the Spanish market has been accelerated not only by corporate decisions but also by public policies. Although it maintains an important presence in the radio networks of some operators – such as 70% in Vodafone-, his exclusion of public aid for rural 5G through an indirect veto has been decisive.
This Government strategy, which requires avoiding “high-risk suppliers” to access public funds, led Huawei to file a lawsuit before the National Court.
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Go deeper. The 5G network core is the brain that manages all connections and user data, turning it into critical infrastructure for national security.
This has ended up becoming a case study on how geopolitics also changes the technological map of a country without the need for direct prohibitions. It is enough to press the appropriate buttons.
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Featured image | Huawei
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The news
Huawei’s long goodbye in Spain: from strategic partner to unwelcome technology
was originally published in
Xataka
by
Javier Lacort
.