Elisa Estonia selects Nokia for 5G RAN deployment under five-year deal

Elisa Eesti, a wholly owned subsidiary of Finnish telecoms group Elisa Corporation, has inked a five-year 5G deal with Nokia for the supply of the latter’s 5G AirScale portfolio. The contract will see both the deployment of a nationwide 5G RAN as well as the replacement of the cellco’s existing 4G infrastructure. In a press release, Nokia said it will be the sole provider, replacing the incumbent vendor, with rollout expected to commence next year following the completion of Estonia’s spectrum auction in early 2022. Under the deal, the Finnish company will provide equipment from its ReefShark System on Chip-powered AirScale equipment portfolio covering Elisa’s nationwide radio network across the country. The release notes: ‘Nokia’s AirScale RAN portfolio is designed for seamless, simple, and efficient ‘plug-in’ deployment and reduced power consumption. It covers all deployment scenarios including dense-urban environments and wide-area coverage.’ The deal builds on a long-standing collaboration with Elisa Corporation, which saw Nokia selected as a nationwide supplier of 5G RAN in 2020 supporting its efforts to digitise Finland and make it a ‘leading global 5G market’.