Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil has assured Malaysia is ready to implement the second 5G network. He said this after receiving a formal visit from China’s Minister of Industry and Information Technology, Jin Zhuanglong.
During the 40-minute meeting, both parties discussed various telecommunications issues including the implementation of the second 5G network. As shared on X, Fahmi stressed that Malaysia remains committed to implementing the dual 5G network model announced over a year ago.
Fahmi added that the telcos that have signed the share subscription agreement with Digital Nasional Berhad are expected to conclude their equity holding by this Friday, 21st June 2024. After the equity deal is completed, Malaysia will begin the next process of identifying which telco will be building the second 5G network.
The minister added that the second 5G network model will be commercial-based. He said the decision to implement a dual 5G network policy is aimed at driving competition and sustainability of the country’s telecommunications ecosystem.
During his discussion with his Chinese counterpart, they also talked about strengthening the relationship between the two ministries.
The implementation of the dual 5G network model was long overdue as the establishment of a competing 5G network was supposed to start as early as January 2024 after DNB achieved 80% 5G population coverage. One of the criterias is to ensure the full participation of the telcos through a Share Subscription Agreement with DNB.
Under the SSA signed last December, CelcomDigi, Maxis, U Mobile, Telekom Malaysia and YTL Communications will collectively acquire a 70% stake in DNB, while the government via the Ministry of Finance will retain a 30% stake and a golden share. Each telco is required to inject RM233 million to acquire a 14% stake.
In April, DNB appointed 5 directors representing the participating telcos as part of the ongoing due diligence process to finalise the equity deal. The telcos were given 20 days to recommend the next steps after a formal board meeting was held to review the due diligence findings.
A few weeks ago, Maxis announced that it aims to complete its SSA with DNB ahead of the timeline and is ready to build the second 5G network.
[ SOURCE, IMAGE SOURCE ]
