OPT-NC updates on 2G sunset progress

Office des Postes et Telecommunications de Nouvelle-Caledonie (OPT-NC), New Caledonia’s state-run national PTO, has provided an update on its plans to gradually phase out its 2G network. The firm ceased deploying new 2G sites in 2019, with the sunset process beginning earlier this year, ahead of a planned final shutdown in 2025. To support its customers during the 2G sunset process, OPT-NC says it will work to: expand 3G and 4G services to the current 2G coverage level; increase mobile network capacity and density; and deploy VoLTE and IoT (including NB-IoT and CAT-M1) technologies. It adds that as of March 2022, 91% of phones on its network were 4G compatible, while only 6% of handsets (around 11,000) were only compatible with 2G networks. The firm is therefore encouraging those customers to switch to a more modern smartphone.