Sabah is set to get the most number of Telecommunication (telco) towers as part of the first phase of National Fiberisation and Connectivity Plan (NFCP) project.
In response to a question in Dewan Rakyat today, Malaysia’s Deputy Minister of Communications and Multimedia said that Sabah is the biggest beneficiary of NFCP 1 project as 50 Telecommunication sites (32.9%) out of a total of 152 sites will be built in the state. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) awarded the construction of the 50 Telco sites to Edotco Malaysia Sdn Bhd and FGV Prodata Systems Sdn Bhd where each of these company will be responsible for 24 and 26 sites, respectively.
These new Telco towers will improve mobile coverage in Sabah with 3G and 4G LTE services for consumers, expected to be completed between 12-24 months.
Once the 50 new sites are constructed, the Deputy Minister said that U Mobile Sdn Bhd will be responsible for the installation of communication equipment and the provision of mobile services. U Mobile will also be responsible for the these Telco towers as a site owner.
MalaysianWireless was told that MCMC will also fund the operating cost of these 50 Telco towers for the next 5 years, until phase 2 of the NFCP. It is believed that U Mobile will deploy MOCN (Multi Operator Core Network), allowing two or more core networks (such as Maxis, Celcom Axiata and Digi) to share the same Radio Access network.
The deputy minister said the construction of these new Telco toweres are based on the universal service provision framework as stated in the Commission Determination on Universal Service Provision (USP), Determination No. 6 of 2002 document (pdf) issued by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
“The ownership of all network facilities and network service equipment funded through the approved universal service plan is owned by the appointed universal service provider as long as their appointment is not revoked,” he said.
[PDF]– Full Transcript by the Deputy Minister of Communications and Multimedia in Dewan Rakyat
