Uzmobile reaches more rural settlements; begins 5G preparations

Uzbektelecom’s Uzmobile division has commissioned 3,100 new base stations in the year to date, and will raise this total to around 3,700 by end-December, it announced in a press release. The state-backed company is focusing on rural expansion as well as 4G LTE coverage improvement in large cities and regional centres, with 2,000 of its total new base stations this year to be deployed in rural areas. Uzbektelecom also highlights its participation in the ‘Action Plan for improving the telecommunications infrastructure of settlements in the Kishlok Rim programme’ overseen by Uzbekistan’s ICT Ministry, within the framework of which Uzmobile will expand cellular communications services in 140 villages this year. The operator also disclosed that it has begun preparatory work for deploying a 5G mobile network, aiming for a national first.