Minister: 3,906 5G sites built since project launched, DNB spent RM1.89b

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) has disbursed a total of RM1.89 billion as of last year for the nationwide high-speed internet 5G rollout project.

In a Parliamentary written reply, Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil said that 3,906 5G sites have been built since the project was launched by the government.

“As of 31 December 2022, DNB has spent a total of RM1.889 billion in which 3,906 of the planned 7,509 5G sites have been completed,” he said.

Fahmi was responding to Barisan Nasional’s Titiwangsa MP Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani’s question on the estimated cost of the 5G rollout project and how much has been spent by DNB until last year.

The minister further said that the high-speed internet project is estimated to cost RM16.5 billion in the next decade.

“This includes RM12.5 billion to fund 5G network hardware and infrastructure as well as RM4 billion for corporate cost expenditure,” he added.

He also said that 5G network availability has reached 47.1 per cent of the population in populated areas where transmitter sites have been activated by DNB but are not yet accessible to users (infrastructure available).

“If we are looking at the 5G sites accessible only to users, the availability of 5G services is at 38.2 per cent of the population in populated areas,” he said.

He also said that eight 5G sites has been built in Perlis last year and DNB projects that 35 more will be built by the end of this year which includes localities at the Malaysia — Thailand borders.

DNB was established in early March 2021 to accelerate the deployment of 5G infrastructure and network in Malaysia. It will offer 5G as a wholesale network service to other telcos.

Putrajaya, under former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s administration, has been in constant negotiations with telcos in the country over the rollout of 5G, with telcos constantly pushing back for more favourable terms — advocating for a dual wholesale network (DWN) model instead of the government’s single wholesale network (SWN) — which they claim would provide better optimising availability and pricing of 5G.

Four days ago, Fahmi said that the ministry is hopeful that the government will come up with a decision on whether to continue with the SWN model for the 5G rollout.