VodafoneThree Seals 5G Deals with Ericsson and Nokia

VodafoneThree has signed multibillion-pound contracts with Ericsson and Nokia to supply equipment for its £11 billion investment in building the UK’s most advanced 5G network.

The agreements, worth more than £2 billion, form part of one of Europe’s largest privately funded infrastructure programmes. Ericsson will act as the primary vendor, deploying its Radio Access Network and core network solutions across more than 10,000 UK sites. 

Nokia will supply ultra-performance RAN equipment to around 7,000 sites and modernise part of VodafoneThree’s voice core.

The network build is expected to boost the UK economy by up to £102 billion between 2025 and 2035 and create as many as 13,000 jobs in engineering and construction, with nearly three-quarters of those outside London and the South East.

VodafoneThree has pledged rapid rollout, with almost three-quarters of the population gaining access to its fastest 5G speeds in the first year and 90% to 5G Standalone (5G SA) by year three. By 2034, coverage will extend to 99.95% of the population.

Max Taylor, CEO of VodafoneThree, said the deals mark a “major milestone” in building the UK’s best network. “They bring the scale and expertise needed to accelerate the delivery of a resilient, secure, world-class and future-ready network,” he said.

Ericsson’s CEO Börje Ekholm said programmable networks were critical to the UK’s digital economy, while Nokia’s CEO Justin Hotard highlighted the importance of resilience as “the AI supercycle accelerates.”