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9.1.8 Telecoms sector news
Russia's largest telecom carriers Mobile TeleSystems (MTS), Veon, Megafon, and Rostelecom state integrated telecom major agreed to join efforts in in developing and optimising the usage of 5G network in Russia. As reported by bne IntelliNews, the development of 5G network solutions in Russia could have to rely on domestically produced servers only. Such solutions do not currently exist in Russia, and the possible push to use domestic servers supports the view that Kremlin chose unpopular frequencies for 5G roll-out to force home-made infrastructure development. The government also proposed to set out a single state infrastructure operator for 5G rollout that would provide carpet 5G coverage and outsource it to the private operators, which was criticised by the anti-monopoly watchdog. In the meantime, existing market players were each preparing to develop own 5G solutions, with MTS teaming up with Skoltech and Huawei, Rostelecom with Ericsson. Veon previously said it would be ready to participate in 5G cross-industry joint venture on certain conditions. The terms of cooperation between the operators remains unclear. "Announced agreement is not specific yet, clearly covering only the issue of freeing needed spectrum (expected) and possibly the joint use of it," BCS Global Markets commented on December 12. "The ultimate form of cooperation is yet to be defined," BCS GM notes, seeing the news as neutral. At this point, the focus will be in looking at ways to clear the frequency spectrum needed for 5G development, BCS analysts argue. This week UralSib Capital also said that uncertainty regarding the 5G rollout in Russia remain high, with the choice of unpopular frequencies for the network still seen as the main risk.
9.1.12 Transport sector news
The last month of the year ended with railway-transported volumes declining 2% y/y to 107mnt, so 2019 as a whole saw a 1% y/y drop in volumes to
85 RUSSIA Country Report February 2020 www.intellinews.com
