Defense connects to 5G and launches contracts to install private networks for the Army for 50 million

The UME will have a deployable private 5G network for its performances

MADRID, 19 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Armed Forces continue with their digital transformation plan and have set their sights on the installation of private 5G networks with the launch of several tenders to launch projects of this type with the help of telecommunications operators for around 50 million euro.

The Ministry of Defense has launched tenders for the three main branches of the Army for the installation of these networks, which provide benefits in terms of cybersecurity and latency and represent a new source of income for the different actors in the telecommunications sector.

The tenders have several common characteristics, such as the use of the urgent procedure and the funds from the Recovery Plan.

The deployment of 5G is a field where the public sector is being very active, since Adif, the railway infrastructure manager, has already promoted several tenders and is evaluating offers for the largest 5G network tendered in Spain, with a contract for more than 100 million euros.

As for the Armed Forces, the largest project in tender consists of the creation and implementation of a development, training and testing center for military operations in cyber defense with 5G technology.

The award to create this complex has a budget of 28.4 million euros divided into several lots, intended to create laboratories and simulation systems.

The contract, whose technical conditions are reserved, has a 36-month execution time and the first offers will be opened at the end of the month.

Likewise, the Army has also put on the market a contract for five million euros for the deployment of two multi-service 5G wireless networks in the San Cristóbal and Colmenar Viejo (Madrid) barracks.

Defense's goal is to create two 'standalone' networks that provide service, among other facilities, to the battleship and helicopter maintenance centers that exist at the facilities.

Another of the units interested in acquiring a high-capacity deployable 5G private network is the Military Emergency Unit (UME), which has launched a process valued at 1.5 million euros.

Among the conditions of the specifications, is the provision of a minimum of 100 5G SA SIM cards, that the core of the network has the capacity to transmit at least 20 Gbps to the base stations.

For its part, the Navy is putting out to tender for just over six million euros the installation of a deployable and portable private network on one of its ships and a receiver system on another of them to reduce the dependence on satellite communications of this branch of the Army .

The winning bidder must provide the Navy with at least 20 terminals and 100 SIM cards and provide the capacity to connect up to 1,000 devices. The project also contemplates the sensorization and robotization of ship elements, as well as the establishment of 5G communications at the Rota Naval Base and the establishment of 5G-based communications in a Tercio de Infantería de María.

Finally, in the case of the Air Force and Space, the networks will be used in logistics environments of hangars located in the Maestranza Aérea in Madrid and in Albacete.

In this case, Defense seeks to contract for around two million euros the installation of a private and secure network that allows coverage of an area of ​​about 25,000 square meters with capacity for a 1Gbps connection with between 25 and 35 milliseconds of latency with up to 1,000 connected devices.