Airtel to procure telecom equipment to support 3G services in the 900 MHz and 2100 MHz bands

Bharti Airtel is planning to invite bids for a multi million 3G equipment contract. The operator is going to expand its 3G mobile network in the 900 MHz and 2100 MHz bands.

Currently, Bharti Airtel?s network is managed by different vendors including Ericsson, Nokia Siemens and Huawei. At present, Bharti Airtel is offering 3G services using the 2100 MHz band and it is using the 900 MHz band for offering 2G services. However, going forward, the operator plans to retain 900 MHz spectrum by participating in the forthcoming auction. Subsequently, Bharti Airtel plans to use the more efficient 900 MHz band to provide data services to customers.