Telecom gearmaker Nokia will boost its manufacturing capacity in India by 1.5x over the next few years to support the 5G services roll-out, said Tarun Chhabra, the company\u2019s country head of mobile networks business.<\/p>\n
![\"Nokia\"](\"https:\/\/im.rediff.com\/money\/2022\/oct\/05nokia.jpg?w=670&h=900\" "\\"Nokia\\"")
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Photograph: Dado Ruvic\/Reuters<\/span><\/p>\n Nokia is supplying\u00a0 network equipment to Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio for their 5G networks from its plant in Chennai.<\/p>\n Vodafone Idea is yet to finalise its contract as it awaits fresh funding.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe have been preparing ourselves for 5G deployment in India for more than a year — whether it is upskilling our people, increasing production, or hiring the right talent.<\/p>\n “With a huge demand for equipment coming up from India, we will need to ramp up manufacturing to meet this requirement.<\/p>\n “We could be looking at an enhanced production capacity of 1.5x in the next few years,\u201d Chhabra said on the sidelines of the India Mobile Congress.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have invested over Rs 600 crore to manufacture telecom products worth Rs 3,500 crore annually, with over 50 per cent for export,\u201d Chhabra said.<\/p>\n Work on expanding the manufacturing facility in Chennai is already underway and more production lines will be added to the plant.<\/p>\n Ramp-up is expected from the first quarter of CY23 and will gradually increase it to 1.5x times of the current level, based on requirements.<\/p>\n Bharti Airtel has already started 5G services in eight cities and aims to expand the coverage across India by March 2024.<\/p>\n Reliance Jio will begin its roll-out in metros by Diwali and will extend the network to the entire country by December 2023.<\/p>\n 5G rollout in the country is expected to be among the fastest in the world with affordable tariffs and the desire among people to embrace the new technology.<\/p>\n India is expected to have over 300 million 5G subscribers by the end of 2026.<\/p>\n The Covid pandemic has also accelerated the use of automation at Nokia, making site integration and software upgrades quicker than usual.<\/p>\n While installation of sites happens on location, they are being integrated into the network remotely through a central location bringing saving time and cost.<\/p>\n \u201cOur focus is on automation of services to be more efficient,\u201d Chhabra said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n[ad_2]\n<\/p>\n News From This Website <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"