Orange buys 5G spectrum in the 700 MHz auction in Spain

Orange Spain has obtained 2x10MHz of spectrum in the 700 MHz band for 350 million euros, during the frequency auction carried out this week by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation.
Orange is consolidated as the operator with the largest amount of spectrum in the two priority bands for the deployment of 5G technology, given that the operator also has 110 MHz in the 3.5 GHz band (3.4-3 , 8 GHz). The company has invested a total of 523 million euros in the acquisition of these frequencies.

Orange’s 5G network already reached 442 municipalities in 38 provinces at the end of the first quarter of the year and expects to offer 5G coverage to more than 50 percent of the Spanish population before the end of 2021.

Monica Sala, general director of Red in Orange Spain, said: “This 700 MHz band is key for the development of 5G SA (Stand Alone) and its use by the operators will favor a full use of all the advantages that it will make possible.”

Orange offers the highest speed, both average and maximum, in Spain, compared to the performance of the networks of its main competitors, according to the study carried out by Systemics-PAB.

This European firm verified the performance of 5G network services in the Telefonica, Orange and Vodafone networks through tests carried out from 11 to 26 May 2021 in some of the most important cities in Spain.

The test said Orange has the fastest network with the highest average download speed at 156.6 Mb / s. The highest maximum speeds were also obtained on the Orange network and exceeded 623Mb / s.